One here; one waiting

Our "pink" baby came on Monday and she is a darling little doll. Mommy and Daddy could not be prouder. Pix to follow.

I've not seen her in person but I live across the street and have viewed the stream of family and friends arriving to give witness to this blessed event. Not a voyeur, just watching from my sick-bed. By Monday I'll be good to make a visit. I hope the new smell isn't gone by then.

Baby "blue"? He is somewhat on schedule for April and it would be kind for him to come then but who really knows with these small packages.

It's raining lemons

As an update to the previous post. Life really threw me a few the past week. On Tuesday my darling and I stopped by the local Popeye's restaurant for a quick lunch. It turned into four days in bed for me. Lucky husband didn't eat the same thing because he had to nurse me back to health. He did a fine job though cooking not his forte I couldn't eat anything anyway.

And, because my glass is half full, I lost four pounds.

I do have lemons

Wish I'd said that:

When life hands you lemons, ask for tequila and salt and call me over.

Kitchen stories: An earful

When I was young I loved to listen to grown-ups talking at the kitchen table. After dinner, the dishes removed and replaced with cups of coffee, they'd talk about all sorts of grown-up things. Politics, gossip but what I like most, old family stories. My cousins were off doing something else but I was quiet so most times I'd go unnoticed and get to stay. I'm not sure I spoke much and for a while thought I might be invisible but that's another story. Many times I remembered playing under the table. If they did shoo me away I'd end up in the hall just past the light from the kitchen, still within earshot.

My mother's uncle Jim was a great story teller and I'm sure added things that weren't exactly the truth but he could spin a tale. One of my favorites was the one he told often about his mother, Susan Truesdell.

The Truesdell family had eleven children surviving to adulthood but when this story took place there were only a few. They were a farm family and though school was available the older boys didn't stay in school very long. One reason might be they were feisty boys.

One evening one of the older boys, about twelve came home from school and told their mother, Susie about the teacher whipping him with a switch. Susie never asked what he'd done but went to the barn, saddled her horse and loaded her pistol. Off she rode down the road to the school house. Driving his buggy home that evening the teacher saw Susie coming, slowed his horse, got out and stood next to the buggy. There were no pleasantries exchanged. From horseback Susie shouted at the teacher, "Did you whip my boy Martin?" The teacher said yes and started to explain the reason. Susie drew her pistol, said "Don't you ever touch one of my children again, " and fired hitting him in the ear. She calmly rode off.

The teacher, far from mortally wounded but seriously scared, jumped into his buggy and sped away to town. He found the sheriff and insisted he arrest Mrs. Truesdell showing his bloodied ear. The next day the sheriff arrested Susie and took her before the judge with the teacher. The judge listened while the teacher, with a bandaged ear, emotionally told his side of the story. The judge never listened to Susie but told the teacher, "Susie Truesdell is a pretty good shot. If she wanted you dead you would be. I'd suggest not whipping her boys anymore. Case dismissed."

The teacher taught the rest of the term but never raised his hand in anger against any of the Truesdell children.

Babies?

There are babies coming.
Tiny toes,
tiny ears,
big voices and wet bottoms.

Sweet little hungry pink mouths
darling knees;
they are coming two by two
one pink one blue.

Chubby round little faces and dark eyes
tiny grasping hands complete with finger nails;
Can't wait to see the color of their hair.

They are coming and
Mommies and Daddies are anxious, too.

Updates to follow.

He could read the friggin' phone book and sell it

I just like to hear him speak but can't stand all the "after" drama. I don't need anyone to tell me what I heard. I liked what I heard.

Text of his speech

Louisiana Gov Bobby Jindal is trying to make a name for himself and run for President. Jindal's politics are firmly on the Republican right: he is opposed to abortion, embryonic stem cell research, gay marriage and the moratorium on offshore oil and gas drilling. We will hear more from this punk.

Information pant-load

Let me just say one thing about our new President. Leave him the hell alone; it's only been a month. Do I like every single thing he's done? No, but I like it a thousand times, maybe a trillion time, more than the last administration. I hated them the moment they took office.

Why does he need to be scrutinized every day? This information overload is disturbing. There are so many news outlets needing to say something new or different that they look like sharks feeding.

In my opinion Bush was elected by the Supreme Court and not the American people for his first term. What happened four years later just amazed me but the Dems did not have a decent candidate but enough about the past eight years, time will be the judge on that presidency.

So will giving each person a check work? I don't think so; I didn't like it when it came from the past administration and I think it's fluff but it's part of the package. Now one thing that could help is the subsidy for COBRA for laid off workers. I know a few and if you are trying to find a job the last thing you need to worry about is health insurance for your family. This part of the package addresses people who need it.


What worries me more? Those monkeys in Sacramento. You need to keep tabs on them and they are way easier to contact. Find your monkey from this link. California State Representative.

Need to drive in the Carpool lane?

I'm sure this would qualify you for the HOV lane. Sure, just tell the cop, when he stops you, these are co-workers.

Buddy?

This is not our dog; repeat, NOT BUDDY. He looks like Buddy but it's his doppelganger. He seems to be the anti-buddy. Click the link to see a video and read about this amazing dog. "Thrown Away Dog Saves Little Girl."


This is our Buddy. He's never saved a life, that we know of, and he's just a tiny bit bigger than the dog above. He is a very loyal, good at heart, dog. If I'm sick he'll stay right at the foot of the bed and he barks at intruders. I love him just as much as he's heroic cousin.

We'll be watching and waiting

It has been a year since my beloved had a cancer removed from his bladder and four periodic test for the recurrence of that cancer. Now, instead of every three months he will go every four months for a test. Doesn't sound all that much better but it is because it a step closer to going every five months for a year, then twice a year, and finally yearly. You see, his type of cancer is what the Dr called an annoyance like some skin cancers. You just have to keep watching to make sure they don't come back.

So when you find yourself at your happiest you also get bad news. Why? Who the hell knows, it's just how the universe works. I'm thrilled and a good friend is sitting in the hospital with her husband and her news isn't so good. He has Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of cancer. I've read it responds well to chemo and I do hope this is the case with him. They are a darling couple and I think of her by his side and how lucky he is to have her. I also think of her pain and wish there would be something I could do or say to help. But there is no magic cure, just waiting.

Sisters

Publishing photos of myself is something different for this blog but I got such joy from finding this photo. I was contemplating giving away an old book and there it was, stuck in the back. As with all photographs there is a story.

In 1988 Doodles and her beloved invited us to their condo in Key Largo, Florida. They were living in Connecticut and thought it would be fun to celebrate Christmas in their little corner of paradise. I even made t-shirts for the trip for everyone--I'm wearing one in this photo-- which was not something our sixteen-year-old lil bird had a desire to wear but did without too much complaining.

We had a great trip of sightseeing, snorkeling, and boating and way too much laughing but that's what family's are all about. Now the next June, sister Doodles invited me down to celebrate my 40th birthday, just the two of us, and we won't tell anyone what we did.

We have our winner!

What a great event! I've selected two winners and they are:

Donna K Schrader at cards and clay in Alaska. She'll be receiving the set of art cards.

Chris Bennet at Creative Corner in New South Wales, Australia. The handmade felt lapel pin will be traveling off to her.

Check out their blogs to see some creative people. Thanks to all the artsy folks participating in this fun event and to all those who came to comment. Don't be strangers.

Weather report: Damn this is good

If I complain about wind I should surely express my thoughts of our current weather, rain. Lovely, soothing rain. The sound, the smell, the wetness--wetness? It is music to my dry ears and has come at a wonderful time, on the heals of a horrible windy January. I can't say enough. Sure, I can't walk or go to water aerobics but our rainy season will be all to short so will sit and enjoy. Reading, knitting, writing, anything quiet enough not to interfere with the drops.

We are trying to conserve water so days like this are a bonus for my thirsty citrus trees though the orange tree, in full blossom, has shed a number of blooms under a pounding shower a few days ago. The fruit from the orange has never been prized but the lemon, ah the lemon, is a favorite with friends and neighbors.

For the dry times I have a CD on my Ipod, Thunderstorms. I've gone to sleep many a time listening to that one. I should really live in the PacNorthwest where rain is not the fleeting visitor but a companion. I did try but we had to move to Bakersfield and after that the prices of property in Oregon skyrocketed; now with the crap economy we can't afford anything. Oh, well I'm reduced to dreaming and listening to our brief rain.

Some can never be rehabilitated

Our darling Buddy dog, at one time in his life, was a monster. Chewed everything mine, including an expensive signed by the photographer art book. I would refer to his as the "bastard with fur " and his breed being a "wire-haired terrorist." His only interest, not that he has a lot now, was finding a way to get into the trash. We'd had baby-locks on the cupboard with the can until we remodeled and have a wonderful slide out drawer; fooled him.

After my beloved retired seven years about Buddy became a model citizen. Imagine that, he was just lonely. He loves going camping and doesn't bolt out the door when it's opened. He is quite enjoyable even though he's not a cuddly dog. I do miss my Sheba, she was the best snuggler in dogdom. Buddy will sleep on the bed but faces the door waiting for some bungler to attack, he's ever vigilant.

Just to keep up the aforementioned title, ever so often, Buddy will pull something sneaky. Last week he must have felt no one was paying enough attention. My Aunt and I were heading for the Getty Villa and, out the door, I remembered my camera and returned to the house. There he was standing in the middle of the dining table his muzzle deep into the remnants of a cup of coffee I had carelessly left. He was so busy slurping up the coffee he didn't notice me and I was too shocked to say anything. Too bad I had not gotten my camera yet as that would have been a fantastic snap. He finally did look up and just turned, jumped to a chair, then the floor, and out the doggy door like nothing happened. Thanks, Buddy, I thought you'd lost all your spirit.

Starry mornings

The weather has been near perfect, still a bit windy but warm, not hot, and clear. If mornings in the spa were like this every day I'd never get anything done. Now the moon is almost half it is cutting down on the star viewing but still great.

For three days we were host to our darling 83 year-old aunt. She enjoyed her visit so and that's all that matters. Her husband of more than 50 years of marriage passed away two years ago and she will never get over it. It's true you can die of a broken heart.

One World-One Heart Event is closed. Winners will be announced tomorrow.

It's time for the One World-One Heart Event and I've almost missed it. Vacations have a way of making you forget everything. This is event is so much fun you just add a comment here on this blog to be entered to win five note cards. These are prints of my pastels and are 4 1/2 X 6 1/2 inches. Envelopes are included.

Giveaway Update: If I get 100 comments I'll give a second prize. This is last years lapel pin but I'll give something similar. It is handmade felt with embellishments.

To enter please include:

• Just click on "comments"
  
• add a link to your site, if you have one,
• or your e-mail address.
  
• Let me know if you are also participating with a giveaway.
  

Now just go to the host's site One World-One Heart and visit all the other participants. Right now there are almost 800 other crafty people participating. Have fun!


DEADLINE February 12th. I will randomly choose one name and let the lucky person know by e-mail or their blog.

Thanks for stopping by.

From El Rincon: Breakfast with the Godwit's

At sunrise the Pacific was flat with just a hint of morning mist hanging off the coast of Santa Cruz one of the five Channel Islands. I sat with my morning tea watching the shore birds dash around looking for breakfast. Marbled Godwits, Whimbrels, and Willets made up this early morning crowd. A wave comes in then retreats and they scurry down to the edge of the water to poke and prod the wet sand looking for sand crabs and small invertebrates. They usually get away before the next wave but sometimes the wave will wash over their slender heads as they come up with something particularly yummy and worth the cold splash. The Sanderlings, much small birds, run in a pack of ten or twenty and they rarely get wet. They perform a choreographed ballet dancing between the wet sand and water.

In front of a cresting wave a pelican glides effortlessly only inches from the water. Near sunset a dozen or so birds will glide single file for miles. I often wonder if they are looking in the clear water of the wave for fish swimming by. They also hunt fish from about twenty feet then plunge headfirst into the water resulting in a dramatic splash.

Beyond the breakers, small groups of Bottle-nosed Dolphins travel up and down the beach feeding on fish. There is a photo of dolphins riding a wave off Ventura but I've not seen it in the wild. I did see California Sea Lion in a wave snatching himself a large fish once. What a treat.

For other post about this lovely area click on the label "Rincon" at the bottom of this post.

AFK to celebrate 39 years

Last year we celebrated our anniversary at the beach so it seemed only natural we head back. To add a little spice we've planned a trip with our dear friends. This should be fun, we've traveled many times together and they are game for some short day trips--plus they love to "antique" and eat as much as we do--so we are expecting a pleasant getaway.

As we are watching the weather the forecast looks promising, though cold, it's 38 this morning. This is just a reminder it's winter because after the past two weeks of 80 degree temps here in SoCal it sort of makes one forget.

For dinner I've planned some outdoor cooking with my camp dutch oven if we find a nice level spot. Rain would be the only thing keeping me from trying this. I could post something interesting on our food blog, Peanut Butter Etouffee, but my camera died. Maybe someone else could take a snap it's not good to be a stranger at your own food blog. We'll also eat out as there are some great places just a short drive from El Rincon.

Sometimes the locals are right

There is a blogger from LA that I like to read, Chanfles. He lives in a small corner of Los Angeles, Lincoln Heights, kvetches--my word not his--like so many of us do, about what goes on in our community. He has a category "Shit I hate" and is funny. He's, among other things, a vegetarian in search of the perfect Huevos Rancheros and reports back when he finds the good ones as well as the not so good. His most recent food venture lead him to San Bernardino and stated he wasn't going back even if it was popular with the locals: sometimes the locals are wrong.

That story rang so true as my sister and I are foodies and while traveling together we try all sorts of restaurants. We even had one entire trip in search of the perfect tamale but ended up learning so much of the New Mexico cuisine I don't know if we decided. We did find posole, ah and don't forget the sopapillas.

One trip to the Southwest we were in search of some tasty Mexican food and after settling in at our hotel in Sedona asked the clerk if there was a good local place to satisfy us. There were directions and a full parking lot and a list to be added to for a wait so this all looked promising. Wrong. We thought, maybe the locals were Gringos because this wasn't hitting any bells with us.

Our next stop was Page, Arizona in the Northern part of the state. Tired from a full day of sightseeing we again asked a hotel clerk and she directed us to a restaurant within walking distance. Not to many in the joint but they had a bar which was now a big part of our criteria. With only one other table with customers they seated us on a large patio. I grimaced. What the hell, I'll have a hamburger but it smelled good with that gentle mix of lard and corn and the salsa was great. I had a good feeling in my gut, well, maybe it was just hunger but we stayed. I opted for Chili Verde, my benchmark in a good Mexican restaurant. We were so hungry by this point anything would do.

That turned out to be one of the best meals we'd had on our ten day vacation. So does that mean the locals were right? It didn't seem to matter that there weren't many customers so how do you actually find the good places? Luck, and the Kitchen Gods were happy with us that night.

How do you find good places when you are on the road? Do you hit the chain restaurants for something safe or are you adventurous?

The skin I'm in

Actinic Keratosis is a scary name for something only somewhat scary, skin pre-cancer. I'm just lucky, and I'm honest with that word, to only have these types of problems right now. I did have one basal and two squamous cell carcinomas removed so I get a good check-up twice a year.

My problem right now is I've had this dry patch on my upper lip frozen with liquid nitrogen three times and it still won't go away. So my darling dermatologist, he is darling, too, will re-try something; a horrible treatment that went somewhat awry last time. Last time I used this cream I got flu like symptoms and my lips swelled twice the size of Angelina Jolie. I was miserable. He says it has to be and I can do it slowing using a third of the dose.

As a warning to anyone younger than a boomer, SUNSCREEN. Buy buckets of the stuff and don't leave the house without wearing a lipstick or lip gloss that has an SPF of fifteen or better. Seems like all that lip gloss we wore in the 80s did quite a bit of harm to the old lips. Who knew? I suppose putting baby oil on and sunbathing until we were a crispy shade of brown didn't help either.