Dancing Sugar Plums

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Public Service Announcement:

Some of you have asked if I could record these epistles. Yes, I can and No, I can’t. In other words: Sometimes. But if you, dear reader, have a vision problem, you need something a bit more reliable than my vocal cords, and I think you very probably have it. I may be wrong, but…IF you use MS Word, there is something called Narrator you can use. I can’t begin to tell you how, but you can go here for information on how to set it up for a PC, and click here for a Mac.You should be able to hear either your own documents, or a page on the web. A great way to check what you’ve written for syntax, etc.
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Weather in the Tries:
It’s getting warmer —the highs will not only be above freezing this coming week, on Wednesday the high will be in the 50s!! The lows will get almost kissing close to freezing, but not quite. Such a tease.        

Dancing Sugar Plums:
I don’t know about you, but I always considered sugar-plums dancing through the kidlet’s heads to be, well, sugared plums. I have been shown the truth. There are no sugared plums in sugar-plums. Did Clement Clarke Moore lie to us? No. (phew. that’s a relief). I found a fascinating 22 minute program on YouTube, Tasting History: Victorian Sugar Plums.

I don’t know if Max Miller, who hosts Tasting History, is a trained chef or a trained historian, or both, or neither. Obviously, he loves history, at least he loves kitchen history, and cheffing. Should that be chefing? 

I really implore you to watch the video. You deserve a break today, besides this one, of course. Pour yourself a cuppa your favorite warm libation—tea, coffee, mulled wine—and sit back, relax, and enjoy this instructive video. The subject of sanity arises in the video—well, you’ll see what I mean when you watch it.

I strongly hope you will quell the urge to make your own, and just go out and buy them, instead.

Wee tiny small quilts:
When I moved back to the Tries from ABQ, I decided I wanted to spend my time on small quilts—table toppers, wall hangings, placemats, no more bed sized quilts. Wee quilts are easier, for the most part, to work on. And take up less space. 

Somewhere along the way, I was told about Lisa Flowers Ross. My wee memory, what’s left of it, tells me I was in correspondence with her father when writing Madame Dorian, Her Journey to the Oregon Country, and somehow quilting came up in one of our conversations. Or perhaps he was just evincing Fatherly Pride in his daughter, Lisa, and her accomplishments. It really doesn’t, at this point in the story, matter. I became a fan of her art and signed up for her newsletter. Be sure to watch the video on the opening page of her website (linked above), it’s about 23 minutes long.

Her last newsletter, had some wee tiny small quilts that were as big as the opening in an 8×10 matt—roughly 3.5” x 5.5” in the matts and frames I bought. I made two as ‘drafts’ before tackling the final ones. I don’t know how she does them, but I strongly suspicion there is very little actual sewing, that most of the pieces are fused. In looking closely at the picture she sent, it looks like the quilting is very minimal. So here are my first two:

Photos of the Week:
This is my first one, Snack Time (apologies for the pinked up white matte and the reflection.)

This is my second, Desert Sunset

from the desk of the sleepy chihuahua;
my human is really weird, but what else is new. it’s winter, it’s cold, and it’s dark. she lets her phone make noise early in the morning. then she lets me out for a few minutes and I go back to bed. does she/ no. she stays up which puts me in a terrible bind. my dogness says I should really be by her side to protect her, but it’s dark outside, and my body says it needs more sleep. I’m very glad she doesn’t get upset with me. now, I’m going back to sleep.

Earworm of the Week:

This isn’t really an earworm, but more of a parody, and I fear I will see it every time I think of the OP. When I Think of Trump, a Yiddish song on YouTube. Enjoy.

Now this is an earworm:
Burl Ives singing the first cover of Ghost Riders in the Sky, recorded 1949. This has been one of my favorite songs since I was a kid, a little kid. My three favorite songs as a kidlet were Ghost Riders in the Sky, Oh Buttermilk Skies by Hoagy Carmichael, I’m Just Wild About Animal Crackers by Mel Blanc. 

The Funky Mood has Abdicated

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Weather in the Tries:
Somewhat warmer, high 30s and low 40s with Sunday on deck to be 49F! Break out the swimwear!! One of the ‘problems’ with the warmer weather  in the winterly months is it usually means wetter weather, too, which robs the air of its warmth.  Somedays I just don’t get no respect. (Thanks Rodney D for a great saying.)

The Funky Mood has Abdicated: 
Well, the funky mood has, I hope, passed. Finally dawned on me that when the dr. changed my neuropathy meds the new ones weren’t quite the same, and the side effects weren’t the same, either. Where the other ones let me sleep a good night, all night, every night, the new ones don’t care if I sleep or not. The old ones were originally used as anti-depressants and for other things like neuropathy, as secondary, so of course I wasn’t in a funky mood. The main thing, though, is the new ones are not as good as controlling the neuropathy pain. I may have to go back to the first ones. 

So a couple weeks ago, I wore my Women’s Army Corps cap to a meeting. Like a good (ex) WAC, I removed my cover (hat) when inside, and laid it on a chair next to my purse. A lady in the meeting saw it, and asked if it was mine. She then proceeded to tell me there’s a group of Lady Veterans in the Tries, and they were having their next meeting Dec 7 and would I like to come. I did like and I did attend. It’s the first time I’ve seen so many Lady vets all in a group since I received my discharge back in 1969.  What fun to have so many gals together. We had quite a gathering, and Santa even left some gifts for everyone! 

And we have a Veteran’s Center! I had no idea. I looked Veteran’s up once, but could only find the clinic, and I don’t qualify. Yes, my discharges were Honorable, but I have excellent insurance through The Boeing Company, so I can’t use the VA system, even on a sliding scale. I’m not complaining.

The other fun thing that happened is I bought a new Roku stick, it came the other day, and I got it all connected and one of the free Roku channels is Midsomer Murders. OMG, I can binge and sew at the same time. I love the Midsomer Murders, I’ve seen several, but so far they’re all new to me. Great fun.

Photo of the Week: 
Here’s my baseball cap. It’s like the other military ones, but for the WAC. I laid out a bunch of my new fat quarters (FQ) to put some color in the picture. A FQ is a quarter yard of fabric, only instead of  cutting 9” off the width of fabric (WOF). It’s 18” of the WOF and that cut in half at the fold so it’s 18” by ½ the WOF. More things can be made from FQs that skinny pieces. I’ll wear my hat, sans the FQ when I attend the Coffee Bunker at the Vet Center this Friday morning.

from the desk of the brave chihuahua;
my human is spending more time in the living room now. she’s watching the telly and sewing. sometimes, she sits on the sofa so I can sit with her and snuggle while she watches the telly. my favorite is when she’s on the sofa. then I can get close and get lots of pets. after all, that’s my primary job description—collect pets and snuggle.

Earworm of the Week:
this isn’t an earworm, per se, but one of several I play while writing. It’s kind of like white noise but prettier. There are several of these ambient soundtracks on YouTube, check them out, find one that works for you. Samurai Meditation For 11 Hour https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kch_zrI1YO8&t=2382s

Quote of the Week, courtesy Reader’s Digest https://www.rd.com/article/veterans-day-quotes/ :

“Freedom is fragile and must be protected. To sacrifice it, even as a temporary measure, is to betray it.” —Germaine Greer

“Re-examine all you have been told. Dismiss what insults your soul.” ~Walt Whitman

Funky Mood

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Weather in the Tries:
Colder. All praise the creator of electric blankets!!

Funky Mood:
Housemate Dan and I are both in a funky mood of sorts. I don’t think either of us is depressed, but I might be close. I think I’m more scared. I’m scared of what’s going to happen to my country that I love come 20 Jan 25? How could any Veteran vote for the Orange Menace? Or any woman? Or…???

But something came to my inbox on 26 Nov that is just beautiful. From the Friendly Atheist, came this invocation to the Tulsa, OK City Council. I am reprinting it here, with Amy Hardy-McAdams permission. This prayer was inspired by a Medusa sigil and Ritual created by Laura Tempst Zakroff and Ms. Amy asked that full credit be given, and I certainly agree. And here is the prayer:

As a Priestess of the Goddess, I invoke the Gorgonaea, champions of equality and sacred rage. I call to Medusa, monstrous hero of the oppressed and abused. I open the Eye of Medusa, the stare that petrifies injustice.

I call upon the serpent that rises from this land to face the Stars, the movement of wisdom unbound.

May these leaders find within themselves the Embodied Divine, the sacred essence of the spark of the Universe and the breath of the Awen.

Place in the hands of these leaders the sacred work of protecting the sovereignty and autonomy of all our people.

Gorgon Goddess, make them ready and willing to be champions for all in this city, not just those in power.

Shine a light for them, that they may walk the path of justice, protected and prepared, illuminating the darkness.

Endow them with the fire of courage, the waters of compassion, the air of truth, and the strength of the earth itself.

As Above, so below.

As within, so without.

As the universe, so the soul.

May there be peace among you all.

And so it is.

This prayer has brought me more comfort than anything. 

The dog and I had a quiet Indigenous Day. I sewed a little bit, and finished the top of a table topper/wall hanging. And started watching as a binge, Doom at Your Service. A Korean RomConFantasy. I watched it about 3 years ago, and loved it, and am loving this one, too.

I also signed on to Bluesky. So far, none of the Hate from Twitter, though some of the “guys” from Facebook are moving over. “Dear Lenora, I just love the way you write, it’s so clear. I have followed you, would you do me the honor of following me so I can get your posts?” And they use the same photos they used on FB. So, no, I’m not following them.

Foto of the Week:
This is the table topper or wall hanging. It’s 22” x 42”. Frankly I really like the picture better than the actual. The points aren’t right, I’ll probably use it to line my sock drawer.

from the desk of the cold chihuahua;
as my human says, boy howdy, it is cold outside. my early morning walk is fast, short, and over as quickly as I can leave appropriate offerings to the grass gods and human can pick them up and place in the altar box. then it’s home, and back to a warm bed.

You Undoubtedly Noticed

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Weather in the Tries: 
Cold

You Undoubtedly Noticed:
I didn’t post a blog last week! I was with a couple of friends who died, one on Wednesday and the other on Monday. They weren’t close friends, but they were friends.

And then I read an article in (I think) the London Times by a man who was nine years old when his mother was diagnosed with cancer. I don’t remember what happened to Dad, but he wasn’t there. And this young boy became a primary care giver for his mom. She died when he was thirteen. He would take care of her in the morning, before school, and rush home to take care of her after school. He did everything, and when the pain got to be too much, she was taken to a psychiatric hospital, where she spent her last weeks without pain meds, and he would come buy every day on his way home from school to be with her, to help, to care.

He is a politician now, and when the vote comes up for medical assistance in dying in the UK, he will vote against it, because he thinks every child should have the same opportunities he did, to care for his dying parent, like he did. Do watch and listen to them scream in agony. Have you ever heard such selfish drivel? Not once did he think that maybe his mom was in enough pain she would have liked to exit earlier and to spare him the agony of watching her die. Maybe he’s a sadist in disguise.

I don’t know, but I sure think he was being mighty selfish. There was another letter a few days later, by a woman, a priest of her church, I forgot her title. Her letter was a little different, but it came down to suffering is good for the soul and I guess her god likes his humans to suffer now so they won’t suffer later. 

The subject of death came up in our Death Café this afternoon. (now is that a co inky dink? or what? /snort/) and I mentioned that in this state we have Death With Dignity for those who want it and qualify. Yes, people have to jump through hoops to partake, and every effort is exerted to be sure it is what the client wants, and 2 prescribers, one a doctor, agree. And they have the right to say, “No.” at any time. One person asked me if Death With Dignity was euthanasia. Another gal said no, euthanasia is what we do for our pets. I thought that was a good response and agreed with her, and gave the patrons of our café two sites to go to for information.

I think about Death With Dignity like I think about Abortion—if you don’t want either one, don’t have it—but don’t force your god’s peccadilloes down other people’s throats. They have enough to deal with, with their gods and his peccadilloes.

So, that’s why I didn’t write a post last week. I was grieving for two new friends I’d made who died before we could even have an argument, and then read those two letters. I was in no mood to write. Anything. Deal with it.

This Week’s Photo:
Took this photo two years ago this week, at Sheryl’s home. Thomas loved this tree, and could no longer see it as it was in the back of the house, and we couldn’t get him there, so I took the picture so he could enjoy the vibrant reds second hand.

from the desk of the mighty chihuahua;
it’s really cold out, and dark. the sun doesn’t come up until after 7 in the morning, and goes away before I can eat dinner and go for my afternoon walk. my human says another month and the days will start to get longer. I think the sun should be out half the time and the stars the other half. but I’m only a dog, and I don’t get no respect.

Whither Thou Goest

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Thank you all my Brothers and Sisters who wore the Uniform when called upon to do so. You and your families are appreciated.

Click below to listen.

Weather in the Tries:
A tad warmer most nights, in the low-mid 40s with the highs in the mid to upper 50s. I don’t mind the really cold temps so much, but they are hard on the Desert Dog. I worry about his little bare feets on the cold concrete. He truly does not like booties or sweaters.

“If You Can Survive Basic, You Can Survive Anything!” 
On the 13th of September 1965, I raised my hand for the first of what would become four swearings-in. The first two were for the Women’s Army Corps (WAC), the second two for the Washington Air National Guard (WANG). To be honest, I don’t remember the first one very much. But I do remember what my Recruiter, SFC Annie B. Hawkins told us gals who were enlisting—If we could survive Basic, we could survive anything. I’ve held onto that saying more times than I can count. 

I survived childbirths, a miscarriage, disappointments large and small, but right now, I feel like I’ve been picked up and dropped into an alternate universe where the language is the same, the buildings, the maps, the times, are all what I’m used to, but the government is about to change into something more horrifying than I’ve ever seen outside of a history book. Or in a book by HP Lovecraft or Harlan Ellison and I have no idea how to navigate the almost-upon-us nightmare of the waking day.

I have family, both by blood and choice, who are immigrants, who are Muslim, who are gay or lesbians, who are trans, who do not worship the god of the victor. The new regime, of king OP, actually, hates all of them, sight unseen. He has promised to take children from their parents, especial parents of the same sex. 

I am utterly amazed at the number of people who think in four years we’ll vote him out. OMG! Were they not listening? IF there is an election in four years, it will be as free as they are in Russia and Turkey and North Korea. Stop thinking in the old terms of four-year election cycles. That time has passed. As the famous opossum once said, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” I looked it up to be sure. I remember it slightly differently, but this is the quote online. I remember it as being slightly ungrammatical, but hey, what good is history if not to revise/whitewash it? And in four years if we do have an election I imagine our choice will consist of either Vance or Junior.

The situation kind of reminds me of a short story I wrote in high school. I think I was a Senior, maybe a Junior. And my mom actually allowed me to use her typewriter. Anyhow, if I find the gumption, I may record it and put it Spoken Word. It’s short enough to be considered flash fiction by some. (less than 1500 words)

On the Beach by Nevile Shute had come out, and I was pretty impressed. Probably because the scenes in the movie where the submarine came up in San Francisco, in the book they  came up in Puget Sound, and Shute described the Sound and the shore as it was. Really. He had a Pepsodent billboard someplace and I’d seen it where he had it. In fact, most if not all of the places he mentioned in Puget Sound, I’d been too, or seen. Kinda creepy. And for sure scary.

Anyhow, I wrote the short story, “Whither Thou Goest,” taped two aspirin to the cover (I filed off identifying marks so they looked like the cyanide pills in the movie), and let one of my teachers read it. I just found it squirreled away in my computer, and hey, for a kid, it’s not half bad. Boy Howdy! I hope it remains fiction!!! But I make you no promises.

So, I’ve survived all sorts of rejection letters, some from very prestigious presses, the collapse of marriages and affairs, nine years, five months, and twenty-three days in uniform—full and part time, the birth of two kids who I love dearly, and by gawd! I survived Basic Training! To quote one of the 3.5 Justices on the Supreme Court, “I resist!”

Photo of the Week:
Remember a few weeks ago when I was on my trip? Well, the Northern Lights were displaying in Massachusetts, and Virginia, and other states where they are seldom seen. Ibrahim, the son of my Good Friend Dixie stepped outside his abode in Gilford, New Hampsire at 7.30 pm and got this shot of them, and gave me permission to show them. Many thanks, Ibrahim. I’ve seen them a couple of times, and they were a pale green. These were pale red, showed much darker in the camera eye than they were to his eye. If you look, you can see stars. 

from the desk of the brave dog:
Sammy says he doesn’t much feel like writing anything. he too is hurting this week.

Some videos you might like:
Los Kjarkas a Bolivian group of musicians: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhcUUIaMb6s

Some super crispy chicharrones and how to make them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUSs0emMQ9s

A short video by Professor Tribe. I admit I slept a bit better the night I saw this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z06TJAMY-bo

And this one will bring a smile or two. Professor Kotaro gets a sushi train for his birthday! Frankly, I’m surprised Hana let him have any of it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlBdK155pW8

Mitákuye Oyás’iŋ “We are all related” ~ Lakota Saying
“Re-examine all you have been told. Dismiss what insults your soul.” ~Walt Whitman

Some Sun, Some Sanity (?), Some Lagniappe

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I figure, even though it’s early, many of us could use some bright and cheery in our lives right now, so here are the rest of the photos. Just for you.

We spent a couple hours at the pool in the complex where Maryann and Dave live. Since I still had a scab on my toe where the railroad spikes were pulled out, I watched from the shady sidelines;-)

After the gals were finished, Maryann took us to the restaurant, also at the same complex. The food was yummy and the views spectacular. Oh, there is also a golf course, but the grass here is not part of it.

Maryann’s daughter and beloved son in law

Goodest Friends, Maryann, Linda, and moi.

The drive from Tucson to Henderson NV was pleasant. I’m going to have to get a city map of Phoenix and environs because I honestly don’t know where I was in driving through it on the Interstate. For years, there was a funky place to eat between Phoenix and Henderson, called Rose’s, or Rosie’s. It burned down a few years ago and they rebuilt it, I thought Kay and I would go up for one of their burgers, but I didn’t see it. Come to find out, it burned down again, and they didn’t rebuild. sigh. There hamburgers were some of the best ever!!!!

This shot is from the patio of the house where Kay lives. I tried to get more planes in a shot but could never manage to get them all showing. Pretty fun watching them come in and line up for the runway which is surprisingly close.

The patio faces east, so this one must be sunrise. Why was I up that early??? I dunno.

GeriLyn, Kay’s daughter in law and Tod took us out to a delightful Italian restaurant my last night there. GeriLynn works in the same complex the restaurant is in, and knows the people there. We were treated quite well, and the food was scrumptious. We were served very special desserts. The manager is also an artist and gave us each a different picture and cake. I thought the icing on the plate was part of the plate i.e. part of the china, and when I moved my plate for this photo, it smudged! Here I thought they’d bought special dessert plates. Nope, make ’em to order 😉

And here we all sit, preparing to dive in to our respective plates. Starting with Tod and going clockwise: GeriLyn, an old wanna be hippie, and Goodest Friend and Travel Buddy ever, Kay. We’ve been friends for something like 57 years!

As I pulled out of their drive, I stopped and shot a neighbor’s yard. Lots of interesting decorations. I think they can do more because they aren’t too concerned rain will spoil the decorations, and they don’t have the winds we get this time of year.

From Henderson to Castaic CA was a pretty short drive. One of the reasons I stopped there was to meet a couple of my Zoomroom poetry buddies. This photo was taken by Good Friend Elizabeth. She is at the left, holding her phone, then is Good Friend Will, and bringing up the rear is me. They life in the LA region somewhere, and fought the traffic to come meet me in person. I consider myself to be super honored. I must have been mid word when she snapped this. I really wasn’t grimacing! And my tee shirt is from a poetry group in LA, Beyond Baroque, and says: Metaphors Be With You!! I saw another tee I liked that says: I use (pix of darth vader’s mask) the / Fo R Ce / Periodically. Love it.

From Castaic it was a pretty easy shot up I-5 to Vallejo where I spent a couple of nights at my brother’s. Getting to know him a bit more was wonderful. Mostly, he sleeps all day and is up all night. That’s been his schedule for years. Anyhow, we went out for dinner at a place he’d not been too. I forgot what he had, I had a yummy salad.

Then he drove me by the Dragon House. These dragon heads are in front, I think I saw two on one side, and maybe one on the other. They are quite spectacular!

When I left a couple days later, I met another Zoomroom buddy who lives fairly close, for breakfast at a place she likes, then we went to a small, indie Book Store, The Alibi. Great little store. If you’re ever in it, stop by and buy a book. Multiple book purchases are appreciated. Alas no photos of Good Poet Friend Anita, or the store, or the restaurant. I hadn’t had coffee yet. Then it was up the road about thirty minutes to stay a few days with my cousins.

Cousin Jimmy is rightfully called Farmer Jimmy in my mind. They have a very busy back yard with pomegranate tree, bay tree, kumquat tree, and I don’t know what all. He told me, I forgot. He also grows tomatoes, herbs, and flowers. Some of his tomatoes And yes the black ones are truly black, and very tasty.

I brought one of the pomegranates home, it was delish! And, in watching him de-seed one, I finally learned how to do it without making a mess!

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I asked what this was, and he couldn’t remember, until he saw another one that still had flowers. I can’t remember, either. My phone says it’s a Red Spider Lily. My phone is not 100% accurate. But it tries.

This is their pool. When I first looked out, very early in the morning, it looked like deep water and ice. It’s a wrinkly blue plastic tarp.

Cousin Betty is married to Jimmy and Cousin Barb is his sister. We three females all quilt, so Betty had some chores to do and sent Barb and me out to buy fabric. Oh, what a horrible thing to do to a quilter, especially when with another quilter. She who dies with the most fabric WINS!! Not sure what we win, but we’re all trying to get there. We went to a resale store that sells fabric and bought fabrics galore, and I found this jacket. I love it, though the gold next to my skin isn’t so great. But with a black turtle neck it should be fine. If not, it will go into a quilt or two. I’m looking for a pattern maker who can make a pattern without cutting it apart. The cut, etc is fun. A perfect Poetry Reading jacket over black slacks and a black turtleneck.

Oh, it was $7.99! It just begged to go in my cart.

And there you have it. The truly last photos of my trip. I hope they help lighten any down you are experiencing.

I will post something on Monday. Unless I’m stuck in a rehabilitation/concentration camp by then.

Peace, Love, Hugs all around.

Part, The Last (unless it’s the penultimate one)

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Weather in the Tries:
Oooh, we be gonna dip our toes into below freezing a couple of nights coming up (OK, it’s only 31F, still…) The ays for the next week will wander around between 51F and 58F. I look at my pictures often just to get warm. And drink hot tea. Methinks Winter is approaching, with a long siege in mind.

Part, The Last (unless…)
Today’s post is mostly photos. Didn’t think you’d mind too much.

It took me a while to get this guy. We were at the park for the UNWRA 5K walk. These are from Dallas and Houston.

What’s a post without a kitty?

Red Hibiscus

Yellow flower

A ficus of some sort.

Now we skip into Arizona. (Skip phip. It was a long drive!) I’ve got an inordinate amount of shots–16 in all. Well, actually, I’ve got a lot more than that, but I narrowed them down to 16. I think I need to narrow a bit more, eh?

This is the entry to Good Friends Maryann and Dave’s house. I want one.

We went to a covered market in Tucson where they had a plethora of wonderful item for sale. This horse was one. I wonder if he was made from Saguaro ribs?

A friend of mine says she reminds him of Phyllis Diller. Isn’t she grand? I think she’s about 3′ tall. I didn’t see a price tag which is a good thing. I don’t a place to put her.

We had dinner at El Charro down the street a couple of blocks from the market. I had a ceviche tostada. The shrimp, etc were throughout the pile, not just on the outside! After dinner, we went to Cherrie’s home, and these shots were from her back yard.

This is a young saguaro. Like many little kids, he had to put everything in his mouth. He ate the moon, but apparently it didn’t tase good because he spit it out a few minutes later.

OK, that’s probably enough for today. There will be another Part, The End next week. Oh it was so warm down there. It will be warm, again, here. But not for several months.

from the desk of the brave dog;
sheesh, but i don’t understand humans. she showed me some of her pictures and there’s not a smell to them. don’t they have dogs down there. what good is it to see something and have no accompanying smells. humans..

Part, The Second

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Weather in the Tries:

Today, Sunday, seems to be our last warm day at 65. The highs for the rest of the week are in the 50s, with the lows in the mid 30s and some higher. It was nice when I left on my Drive About and I’ve spent the week since coming home getting warm. How quickly I adapted to the warmth of Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, and California. However, I have a dog (only 1) and an electric blanket, so on those 3-dog nights, I can turn it on and make up for the 2 dogs I don’t have, and that Sammy wouldn’t like, anyhow!

Part, The Second:
It took 3 hours to drive to the rental in Dallas, all back roads until arriving at the Freeway in, around, through Fort Worth and Dallas. Siri got me through the obstacle course and to the house we’d rented. I arrived at 3pm, check in time. Two ladies were there, the fourth was in route to the airport to pick up our fifth lady. We got along fine drank lots of coffee, wine, tea, and told some great stories.

The culmination of our stay was a 5K Walk for Gaza, which I did not partake of, but waited and cheered them on. Then we left for Houston, where I stayed with Good Friend Terry and GF Dixie for two days, then up to Austin to stay with GF Patsy for two days, then a short drive to San Antonio to have breakfast with my Favorite Sister Melanie. Haven’t seen Melanie is ages, and breakfast was over too soon and she had things to do, and I had a long drive ahead of me.

I really looked forward to stoping at Rosa’s Cantina as I went through El Paso. Yes, that Rosa’s Cantina. It was an easy off and an easy on to the freeway, and I just wanted a couple of tee shirts. Alas, my phone overheated in the Texas sunshine, and it was out of commission, and to add to my misery it was rush hour and I couldn’t remember which exit, which on ramp, so I stayed in the inside lane and drove. And drove, and drove, and drove some more.

Spent a bit of time in Lordsburg NM, looking for a motel, finally found one, the lights were off, and the street was dark, and I misunderstood, the name of the town and thought it was Laurdesville, city of miracles as it was a miracle I found the motel.

The next morning, I drove into Tucson to see my Good Friends Maryann and Dave, and Good Friend Linda. We three gals, having pity on Dave, got a hotel room and had a ball. And Dave enjoyed the peace and quiet of a female-free three days. New Friend Cherie (Mary Ann’s daughter) took we three to old town Tucson, and a covered market, then to an excellent Mexican restaurant. It was all a bit of a change for me, the hotel put out an excellent breakfast, so I ate at 8 instead of 11, but managed to go until an early supper. Cherie took us to her house and the view was fantastic, especially as the sun set.

Then it was time to leave, and take a short trip up to Henderson NV and my old travel buddy, Kay. She is living with her son and dil (Tod and GeriLyn), and we had a few days of gossip, and more gossip, and then we just jawboned a bit. Kay made an appointment for me with the gal who does her pedicures, and oh. I think I died and went to foot heaven. GeriLyn took us out to dinner at an Italian restaurant close to where she works, and is known. The staff knows her, and the manager gave us complimentary appetizer, and special desserts. Check out the desserts and the icing art on the plates.

Kay and I had wanted to spend a day or two in Death Valley, but the roads are still bad, so we gave that up. I’ll fly down for a few days later on, and we’ll go then. To make up for our disappointment, we talked some more.

Then it was again time for Siri to get me to Castaic CA and the Roadway Inn. I arrived two hours before I could have my room, so the manager brought out a couple of tables and chairs and I set up shop in the lobby. Two of my poetry friends from LA area came up and we spent three or four hours talking and on a zoom meeting. And, again, it was time for parting. But the meeting and visit with Zoom Friends Elizabeth and Will was good for us and good for our poetic souls.

The next morning was a drive up to Vallejo and a marvelous couple of days with my Favorite Brother Craig. He turned me onto a delightful series on Netflix, Blue Eye Samurai. He went to work the next day, so I binged on it. Watched the whole series. Great fun. It’s anime, so it’s much easier to up with put the violence and swordfights etc. 

After a couple days, I drove to Vacaville, I think it was less than an hour by quite a bit, and spent some marvelous days with three of my cousins. Barb is a quilter, and we went shopping for fabric, and other fun things. I came home with lots of goodies. And ideas. Eventually, it was time to leave. I’d planned on taking two days to come home, but wasn’t tired so came on in to Kennewick and slept in my bed with a very snuggly dog.

I also brought fresh bay leaves from Cousin’s bay tree, a pomegranate off his tree, and some persimmons off another of his trees. I’ve never had persimmons before, or don’t remember if I have. They were quite interesting. Don’t think I’ve had pomegranate since elementary school 

My body is here, and I have it on good authority my brain will catch up to it fairly soon. Perhaps this next week. Not sure where I left it, possibly at Cousin’s house. I haven’t miss it very much, but I do kinda sorta it would catch up with me. I do miss it. 😉

And there you have it, 4 weeks of travel condensed to two parts of blog. Long blog. Maybe a slog? I hope not. 

Photos of the week:

The four gals who walked:

two views of an armless flier at the Mall we went to in Houston:


from the desk of the happy dance dog;
my human is home, it’s so nice to have her to snuggle with, and to feed me and walk me in the mornings. housemate dan usually does it in the afternoon’s but that’s ok ’cause he always brings me back to my human.

Home Again, Home Again

2 Replies

Weather in the Tries:
A whole lot cooler than when I left, and where I was! Feels kinda good, actually.

Home Again, Home Again:
Had a marvelous trip. There were a couple of changes, but nothing serious, and one was quite beneficial. I remembered we had a new home to go to, but the fact the date slid one day to the right totally slipped off my eyeballs. I figured it would take 3 days for a leisurely drive from Kennewick to Dallas and the AirBNB we rented. So, as I’m leaving Kennewick on Saturday, I called Goodest Friend Dixie, back in Virginia, and told her I was on my way and would see her on Monday.

Pregnant pause: Monday? I thought we were meeting on Tuesday?! 

Yep, we were. Well, I was already on the freeway and no way to turn around, so I kept going. Loverly day through Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, and Wyoming. Spent Saturday night in Rawlins, Wyo. Had a loverly drive through a gray and drizzly Colorado (had a time, distance warp but me back on the Dark Side of the Cascades?). New Mexico was sunny, and Texas was a mash up. Sun, drizzle, sun, drizzle and by the time I got to Wichita Falls, it was drizzly (sort of) and dark.

NO signs on Texas highways or roads as to what’s available next exit. If you don’t know, you don’t go. I missed a whole row of motels and got off at the next exit and tried to back track. Uh, no. I stopped at an all-night grocery and asked the young man where I was. I realized the mistrake as soon as I saw the expression on his face. I laughed, told him I knew I was in Wichita Falls, and missed the last exit up the road, and wanted a motel. He assured me I could continue going north, but if I went south a few blocks, there is a very nice motel across the street from the Arby’s on the off ramp I took.

Why didn’t I see the sign for the motel? Because it was dark, and almost midnight their time, and the lights were off. Both at Arby’s and the motel. But I found it. Right where the young man who thought for a couple of moments he had a crazy lady on his hands. (Oh, if he only knew….)

It was an old Econolodge. The room was clean, neat, the bed comfy and I took it for two nights. It was also very, very quiet.

Since I was a day early I had an extra day to sight-see or sleep or whatever. Yes, I chose the last door and did whatever.

Doing Whatever:
I brought about 2.5 inches of poems printed out. That’s probably a good 400+ pages. The room had a cabinet with a large top, maybe 5-6’ x 3’. Perfect for sorting poems. I went through them, put them into 8 or so categories, then went through one more time and got rid of the obvious doubles. Then, I put each category in alphabetical order by title. Found a few more doubles. Then, I got really OCD and pulled out my file folders brought just for this, and wrote on each folder, in alphabetical order, the poems therein.

That made it much easier to find yet more duplicates. And there were some. Then, I began putting them in reading order, by category. The upshot is, I think I’ve got two books of poetry. One on Thomas and Grief, and one on everything else. I had no disruptions, I did get hungry at one point, looked at Arby’s across the street, looked at my project, and voila! I ate some of the junk food that was in my car 😉 Peanut butter filled pretzel bits, a bit of Pub Mix, and Peanut M&Ms. I opted to work and eat junk food. And water. Drank lots of water. I kept working instead of going through the old cemetery next door. Do I know how to have fun, or what?

The next morning, I checked out, and sat in the lobby reading Inside the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler’s Berlin by Erik Larson. I tried reading his book about the Devil in White City, and couldn’t get to page 60, let alone beyond, but this book was a page burner. The main reason I hung around is, I was only 3 hours from Dallas, and couldn’t check in until 3, so I sat and read. 

Photo in the AirBNB:
This was a photo of a sculpture that hung in the living room. The Dallas Skyline. The art appeared to be actual size. 

from the desk of the brave dog, Sammy;

my human is back, my human is back, my human—happy dance, happy dance 

And there it is. More next week. Right now, it’s time for yet another nap. 😉

For those of you who followed it, here is the Opening and Closing theme to Dallas. And, no, I have no idea who shot J.R. For that matter, I’m not even too sure who J.R. is/was.

Happy Monday!!

2 Replies

Weather in the Tries:
Beats me, I’m pulling into Dallas TX for a week. However, I have it on good authority that yes, there will be weather in the Tries. Sunshine, shade, blue skies, clouds, whatever—enjoy! Dallas will be hotter. San Antonio hotter yet. If you care, check where I am by date, and then check the weather there. 

Happy Monday:
If you’re wondering how I’m travelling—well, I’m using Apple Maps, and following directions. Mostly. There does seem to be some minor differences between Google Maps and Apple Maps. My friend and I compared the driving times from Kennewick to Port Charlotte FL (she was on Google) and I on Apple Maps which was an hour shorter. We did not compare actual maps to see where the differences were, if any.

So, if you want to follow along, my itinerary follows: 

21 Sep, leave for a 3-day drive to Dallas TX

not sure where I’ll stop at night along the way, but I’ll stop when tired. Hopefully in Laramie WY. Will turn right and head south through Raton NM and down to Amirillo TX then hang a lazy left and onward to Dallas for a week of gossip and writing, except I won’t be doing much writing, I’m taking a couple inches of printed out poetry and hope to get a book put together.

29 Sep, leave for a few days with my sister, in San Antonio.

3 Oct, leave for a good friend I met in ABQ but she moved to Marana AZ, I’ll probably make it a two day trip, as it’s more than 12 hour drive, and I want to stop in El Paso, at Rosa’s Cantina and buy a new tee shirt. Fortunately, they are easy off and easy on I-10. I’ll probably get something to eat, too. But I’ll forego the quart jar of margarita. Sigh.

7 Oct, I leave out for Henderson NV where I’ll pick up my old friend and travel buddy and head to Death Valley, for an o’night if the motel has a vacancy. Or, we can make it a day trip. Or maybe spend the night in Amargosa? We’ll figure it out.

12 Oct, leaving Henderson for a short drive to Castaic CA where I’ll spend the afternoon with poetry friends, and the night.

13 Oct, I head up to Vallejo, to spend a couple days with my brother. He’s on a different schedule, for the most part. But we’ll get to talk for a bit where our schedules overlap.

15 Oct, up to Vacaville (30 minute drive?) to spend a few days with my cousins, and then I’m gonna beat feet and head for home. 

I make no promises about posting blogs on the trip. I’ll do what I can, but I’m on vacation, and if nothing else, I’ll post stories and photos once I return. I’ll drive north to Weed, then a lazy right and go up the bright side of the Cascades until I’m home 😉 

I hope to be home the 19th or 20th of October. 

And there you have it. My last Grand Tour Road Trip to visit friends and family, not sight see. Though I do want to go to the Alamo when in San Antonio. I was there when I was nine, with my grandparents. I’ve seen the photos. I have NO memory of it, and some of my childhood heroes died there! I remember wanting to see it, but  every place else we went I have memories, not there.  And of course Death Valley, that is pure sight see, but both Kay and I love the valley. (And I will take any excuse to drive through Pahrumps!!!;-) And a few fabric/quilt stores.

I do a couple of things on road trips that work for me. I stop every two hours, plus or minus, make a pit stop and refill my big cup with an iced tea or whatever. I eat light while travelling so I don’t get sleepy from too many carbs. If I do get sleepy, I stop for a nap. So, know I’ll be driving safely. My favorite pit stops are at Love’s Truck Stops. The store and restrooms are always clean, the staff are always smiling and friendly, and the choice of food is amazing. From the ubiquitous hot dogs cooking on the rollers to a bowls of fresh fruit and salads. And half a dozen different coffees, iced teas (sweet and not). They even have showers in case you couldn’t find a hotel for the night/s before!

Photos of Some Week to be posted on Some Day:
Honest, trust me.

from the desk of the crying chihuahua;
sniff. sniff.

Poor puppy. If I take him he gets horribly stressed, and two of the places I’ll be have dogs, and he’s not over fond of other dogs. If I leave him, he gets stressed, but he’s in his own den, sleeps in his/our room on his/our bed. And he’s not nearly as stressed as he gets in a car. And I’m less stressed when he’s home, too.

Will try to write and post as I go along. Stay well, and Let Americans Laugh Again!!!