the lucky leap.

I don't have a remote for my camera, so I did this by timer, this was my first attempt, and my only successful one the others I was preparing to jump or had just landed.
I was a little on the fence of posting it, but I said to myself "f*ck it,I'm gonna be brave and just do it. regardless of the bulges or my hot sexy Sorels(haha) and oh by the way it was 19 degrees out too!

I also love, Wilma in the background, thinking (again) what is that silly human doing, now?!?!

I figure I have 4years to either buy a remote, or perfect my timer jumping.
Cheers to a great leap year!

stalling techniques

in an attempt to stall writing an artist statement, I will post distracting winter pictures instead.

artist statement

I've been able to call my self an artist, specifically a printmaker for the last 5 years.Today, my show opened at the gallery, at Zea Mays Printmaking.I'm showing alongside two other artists, who are also members of Zea Mays.
I'm supposed to write a small artist statement, about what my art is saying, or why I create it as such, the thought of this makes me queasy. I'm nervous that I won't be able to come up with any good words to describe what makes me tick, as an artist.

I remember printing at the studio for the first time, feeling like a novice, but not in a bad way. They had knowledge and experience behind their printmaking, and they were generous to share it.I absorbed it like a little sponge.Beside finding my style,I also got over my big bad self and realized, I am artist, and it's okay to utter the "a" word.In the past I had always , known I was artistic, but I am nurse, who took an occasional art class.Now, I am a printmaker, and a nurse.

So back to the initial statement, about the queasiness I get about writing about myself as an artist.How to describe, what inspires me to make an image. Nature inspires me, it's the repetitive patterns that occur out of necessity, not just because they look good.I find that awe inspiring for me. It's not just me that is  inspired this way, storytellers, are inspired by nature too. And that's the second part of it. I have been told by people, my prints remind them of folk art. I keep an eye out for everything , how people present images, how a kernel of that must works it's way into my visual memories. I draw a fish, it's part realistic, part fantastic, part Dr. Seuss. It's my version of a fish, and somewhere in that, is a memory of a feeling, that I present, how it makes me feel, which i hope make you feel something too.

Not sure if this can be considered an artist statement, but I consider it a first draft.
I think I will sleep on it, and consider this again tomorrow.

pulling the print

pulling the print |28, originally uploaded by ms.Tea.

I have a show coming up , toward the end of February with 2 other artist, so I'm thankful the ideas have been flowing.

wintery

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

"A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death."

Martin Luther King,Jr.

"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."


I have a Dream

the text of the speech

the Family of Driver

I don't claim to be the best driver (though I am) But these are a few things that cause me to grind my teeth during the daylight hours,while driving, and frankly my dentist would like me to stop.

1. the Non Directional user- you know this person, they can't make that long reach to turn on their directionals.But they can stop suddenly in traffic, and wait and hold up a line of cars behind them, but they can't(can NOT) turn on that directional. How they can ever turn their steering wheel enough, to actually make that turn, is surprising, but they do, albeit slowly.

2.the Tailgater aka the Headlight Blaster- this person is a wimp, most likely makes passive aggressive snarky remarks, but is too weak willed to pass you, or shut off their high beams, or fog lights. The follow behind you closely, like somehow that will help them save gas, or maybe it gives them time to talk on their cell phone,with out having to look at the road. They also feel they are doing a public service, by lighting up the back of your head, and the inside of your car, to enable you to see better.

3.the Wimpy pull out driver- this person has no patience. They are the person, who has either pulled out across your lane of traffic, waiting to get in the other lane going the opposite direction, and they don't care that they are blocking your way.They are sick of waiting, that's it, they've had enough, they're going whether you are coming or not. They have also been know to pull the nose end of their car out in traffic, so you and the other 50 cars behind you, have to deliberately drive around. Evidently they have never been hit, while performing this maneuver, because if they were, they'd find out quickly, that Insurance companies call this "failure to stop", and it'll make them responsible for the damages incurred on their car and yours.

4.the Premature pull out driver- is a close cousin to the wimpy one in #3.They have been known to pull out suddenly in front of you, when your the only car on the road, and then drive extremely slow in front of you. I believe these people can't see, perhaps they are sightless, like underground moles, or maybe it when the invisibility shield on my car decides to work, nonetheless they pull out and you actually have to brake for them to complete this maneuver, that they are so talented at.

5. the Snow driver- this person has many of the above ailments, but they all occur when it snows. The snow can turn the average driver into an impulsive idiot. This person can't drive in the snow, their car isn't prepared for it, and they have no snow driving skills. They either drive too slow, or much too fast. They must pull out in front of you suddenly, because braking in the snow and ice is something they have no concept, and they're a little misinformed about the laws of momentum and inertia. They also usually don't clear of their cars of snow, or their windshields, except on the driver side so they can see, damn it. They are usually heading to a supermarket, or to Dunkin' Donuts, and that's important and worth risking your life for.

6. the Red light yeller- this person, drives too slow in the snow often, or too slow period.They get highly offended, when the street, turns from single lane to double, and you have the nerve to drive in the other lane, no longer following them, or you drive faster then them,when you pull in the other lane. They tend to come out in snowy weather, driving 15 m.p.h.At the stop light they will exert the energy, to open their window, to yell at your closed window, but won't put that energy into pressing on the gas pedal, or using their directionals.

I'm sure there are other species in this family of drivers, but this is the variety, that I curse silently under my breath, and through my gritted teeth.

Fifty things about my husband

Yesterday was my husband's 50th birthday. I would have loved to have this posted then, but life gets in the way. Besides I was baking him a cake, a birthday fruit cake. Hey what can I say he likes fruit cake.So with out further ado Fifty things about my man.

50.He likes fruitcake, really likes it. Bemoans the fact, he can't find it anymore, like he used to be able to.

49. He is very much my partner in this marriage, it's very 50-50 with him.We split the parenting equally, as much as we split everything else.You know the else: laundry, cleaning the bathroom, we have two so we each take one. He does the cooking more and more, now that I am in the studio twice a week.

48.He makes the best chili, and the best hamburgers too.

47.He makes me laugh everyday.

46. He can fix anything,which I wouldn't trade for anything.

45. He does his Christmas shopping ,at the last minute,every year like it's a brand new holiday he has never heard of before, and didn't realize he need a gift for.

44.Comes home for lunch everyday, he loves to be able to squirrel away in front of the computer, read the latest headlines, and his favorite blogs and gets slightly annoyed when I happen to want to talk to him at that time.

43.Is the king of finding the best deals on Craiglist, he's bought two sailboats,two flat files for me, and our newest member of our family Mr. Bowflex.

42.Is a Capricorn, and procrastinates worse then I ever do.

41.Washes the dishes, granted it's the stuff we can't put in the dishwasher, but he does it.

40.Is a Republican, and loves me even though I am a Democrat, and same for me. He's one of these more liberal people caring Republicans, we both believe in same sex marriage, etc.

39. He sings but horribly off key, which makes it all the more charming.

38. He's a great short order cook, and loves to do a large percentage of the cooking when we go camping. We have a mega huge cook stove, and he makes the best homefries on it.

37.Empties the dishwasher, but doesn't like to close the door completely after, so that clean light stay on, which makes me think, there are still clean dishes in it when there are not.

36.He is patient with my need to complicate things.

35.He drives like an old man, which to that he will tell you I drive with a lead foot.

34.He bought me my first digital camera.

33.He is able to buy groceries , and have it actually be the things on the list.

32.Laughs hysterically at evil, but funny grossness of South Park.

31.He watches The Simpsons faithfully.

30.He eats the same thing for lunch everyday, well he has two choices, either ham and cheese or hot dogs, fried to brown crispiness.

29.Is very supportive, of me, our son, and the weird decisions we sometimes make, or the weird things we do.

28.He is an expert cat holder.You know you need to give the family cat medicine, but they are too wily to just take it, hidden in hamburger like the dog. So you need a cat holder, maybe wrassler would be a better term, so the ill feline can get her medicine.Without destroying any of the fingers of the med giver.

27. He thinks capri pants are the biggest joke on women everywhere, unless you have legs that are skinny and long, he thinks they make your legs look fat and short, and after listening to his reasoning, you know ladies it does.

26.His favorite movies are Casablanca, The African Queen, and Barbarosa.

25.His favorite shows on the food network, are Good Eats, ans the Ace of Cakes, he has a not so secret crush on Mary Alice, the receptionist of Charm City Cakes.

24.Bakes a mean Cornbread, no wimpy pan he uses a cast iron skillet.

23.Has been a good mentor to other oil Burner technicians where he works, explains things simply but completely. I've seen him talk to one of my friend's husband when they had furnace problems, so well that they were warm and snugly on bitterly cold night, last January.

22. He is a good sailor, and spends his free time reading about all things sailing.

21.He is very loyal.

20. He is also very stubborn, but will change his ways when he's shown the error of them.

19. He is trying to quit smoking.

18.He loves to putter around, whether it's cutting up the fallen trees, in our woods,or doing finishing work around the house, he can spend his whole day doing that.

17.He never nags about things.... never.

16.He is a reluctant traveler, he really is a homebody. But with much gentle nudging on my part,he is taking a family trip to Amsterdam this summer.I think it's because we are staying on a houseboat, but shh don't tell him I know that.

15.He is the best reader of kids books ever, I have fond memories of him reading to our son, especially from Dr.Suess, and Roald Dahl.

14.He taught me how to play cribbage, when we were first dating.And admittedly I was quite a sore loser, until I figured out the game. How he didn't burst out laughing at me as i pout through my beginner loses, is a testament to his teaching abilities, or his ability to love me when I'm being a brat.

13.He doesn't drink milk, he has it on his cereal but he won't drink it, it goes down the sink drain.

12.He brushes his teeth after supper, every night, except maybe when we're camping.

11.He gives his opinion when asked, but doesn't get upset if you don't take it.

10.He was in awe of our son from the day he saw him on the ultrasound screen, and has always been one of his strongest supporters.

9.Is a smart aleck, you know the kind you laugh with even though they are giving you a ration.

8.Has a good poker face, and will let me know after I've had to steer the sailboat, into our slip, how nervous he was, but how proud he is of me for not crashing the boat.

7.He loves hosting the family get togethers as much as I do. We love it, but sometimes we wonder why, after they've gone home, when we are by ourselves,giggling at some of the things that were said and done by them.

6.He is one of the nicest men,I've ever met.

5.He walks the dog, as much as he'll tell you our dog Wilma is a dope, he secretly loves her, and spoils her with dog biscuits.

4.He often does the opposite of what I ask, but I do too, so it makes us perfectly matched.

3.He can read a map, though he may not necessarily follow the directions he can read from it.

2.He loves his families (mine and his)even if he likes his peace and quiet.

1.He's my BFF, he gets me, laughs at my jokes, and listens to my disappointments, that I can only share with a BFF.He knew before I did that we would be together,and I thank my lucky stars that he had the patience to let me come to my senses, and find that out too.

funny

Where my studio is located, where I continue my self education of printmaking.
Is also the studio of Hilary B. Price , who has a funny website Rhymes with Orange and a new equally funny book called Pithy,Seedy,Pulpy,Juicy.
We were reading it at the studio, laughing out loud. She has a way of capturing the humor of everyday which is hilarious. I suggest you run,not walk and buy this book.*
You will be laughing at the register as you buy it, because you know you will be thumbing through it. And if you do mail order, your box will be mysteriously not damaged but retaped because the UPS or the Fedex driver will have opened the box to read it and laugh hysterically too. I'm telling you it's that funny.

*this may also be a presumptive review of the book as, I read half of it,and was blinded by the tears I had from laughing, so I'm buying one today, when I go back to the studio.

happy birthday

yes it's my birthday. I am officially 45 years old. I wouldn't trade it for anything, I like getting older, I'm more comfortable in my own skin at this age, finally.

I notice as I get older, I am looking more like my Nana, I have her cheeks, her teeth. I'm sure i will turn completely grey like she did. But I'm taller than her, and I don't smoke, and I wash my cast iron skillet, after each use, unlike her, who left it "seasoned", as a kid it gave me the heebies, when she would offer to cook me eggs in that pan. She loved me fiercely and laughed at my jokes, and spoiled me just like a good Nana should. She also taught me how to shop for fresh produce, one of her jobs as a single mom was working at a produce stand,I know what to look for when I buy strawberries, and melons, and especially cherries. I remember picking out the fruit she would buy, and her being happy with my decisions. I felt pretty smart, accomplished, as a young girl learning that.

Thank you Nana.xxoo

After the holidaze

It's over,Christmas is over, I have two large trash bags full of just wrapping paper!It was amazing and exhausting,do I find it depressing? No!
I'm a little baffled by the post holiday Christmas blues, but that's said more out have never experiencing it, then incredulous outrage at the thought.

Our family gatherings were split and separate this year, His family on Christmas Eve, mine the day after Christmas, and Christmas we spent at his sister's, lots of fun, lots of good food,and a nice pinot noir.

I served a spinach lasagna, and italian meatballs, and garlic bread, plus a table full of things to munch on; nuts, cheeses,chocolate graham bunnies. On Christmas Eve we tracked Santa via NORAD ,yes that's right, Virginia... NORAD! Who knew that the North American Aerospace Defense Command, also kept track of Santa. If you've ever believed in St.Nick, or have kids that believe in him,this is a lot of fun, especially if you have a partner to view it with, like say my 4 year old nephew, who was so happy and excited, and dropped the greeting" Feliz Navidad", often.
I received some really nice presents, a blooming Christmas cactus was one of them, and one of those easy to use corkscrews, no more pieces of cork to spit out.

On Christmas day we opened our presents, My husband still thinks I wear post earrings, which i haven't in a decade, luckily no feelings were hurt. I find with work , and having to wear a mask that posts get caught, or torn out, and french wires, may be removed just as easy, but no one looses an earlobe over it.
I received a great iPod docking receiver, my son and I both own iPods, and we can put either one in it, it'll be nice for up in my home studio. To crank those playlists.We also had our annual cinnamon rolls. Don't be too impressed , they are the Pillsbury kind, that come with the little can of frosting, but they're a fun Christmas memory.Then in the afternoon, we went to his Sister's house, she had some good food, and snacks to nibble one, the pinot noir was flowing. It was another relaxed day, plus we had turkey.

On the 26th, my family came with lots of presents in hand,see above photo, my mother is a force to be reckoned with, and she buys everything you want and then some. My sister too, and myself we have learned well from my mother. It was kind of cool to see the amount of gifts, but oy! all that paper. We also got to meet Zoey the littlest puppy, too cute and fun, and my dog Wilma didn't mind her much, though when she got too close to her when she was eating, she gave her a growling little smile, that put the puppy in it's place. Of course there were also dog gifts as well as people gifts, Wilma received a squeaky raccoon, and Zoey received a squeaky pheasant, which was as big as her, but she attacked and gnawed at it happily.We had ( in the house that night, but it was a lot of fun.

And yesterday, finally it was over.
The tree is still up, and will stay up until New Year's Eve, I'll take it down on New Years Day, it's a safe activity, if you've had some fun, maybe too much fun on New Year's Eve.
All in all it was a very nice holiday.

happy holidaze

Have yourself a Merry little Christmas.

zoey

zoey, originally uploaded by ms.Tea.

this is my sister's puppy, zoey. this picture was also taken by my sister, I merely enhanced it a little.
Isn't she too damn cute!

christmas music

There is a lovely group at Flickr, called my Monday music advice. I try to post to it, but sometimes I forget and miss my Monday post.
I guess when that occurs and I need a subject to write about , it'll be my Wednesday music advice, but I'll post it here.

So lets get down to it.

Christmas music can either numb you, with bland Muzk, where you're not exactly sure, what the song is because it sounds the same,as the one before.
Or it can fill your heart, bringing back good Christmas memories, the same way really food can.
Here are my recommendations for the Christmas season:

1."Christmas around the world" by Putamayo
this collection covers all the bases from"Joyuex Noel", to "White Christmas", to a wonderful Cuban influenced version of "Deck the Halls", and a awesome Cajun version of St. Nicholas. Everyone will like this from your Gram to your gothed out niece. It's just that good. People will be toe tapping and enjoying Christmas time traditionals, and you'll put this CD on the carousel, and play it for hours.Think of it as an international retelling of songs that you already now.We may all celebrate the holidays differently , but there are some things that unify us, and music is definitely one of those things, and this CD presents that beautifully.



2."Jazz to the World"
This jazz collection is great a wonderful glimpse at how well Jazz can enhance old Christmas standards, my favorite is a version of "Baby, it's cold outside" with Dianne Reeves and Lou Rawls, when ever I hear this song, it makes me want to look out the window and see the snow falling fast and heavy, plus it very playful, and flirty. Another favorite would be "Il est Ne, Le Divin Enfant" by Dr. John, this bluesy New Orleans based version is fun, and down and dirty, just like the holidays can be especially if you have that extra glass of pinot noir. I also want to curl up under my Christmas tree and listen to only Diana Krall singing "Have Yourself a Merry little Christmas", her version it's just sublime. Another favorite that'll make you stay there is Michael Franks version of "Let it Snow! Let it Snow!"



3.A Very Special Christmas 3
This is the third in the series of A Very Special Christmas Cd's. I own most of them, but this is one I put on often , In this this Cd, some unexpected artists, like the Smashing Pumpkins, and their song "Christmas Time", is beautiful, and timeless. Also Natalie Merchant singing "Children Go Where I Send Thee", maybe the only reason you need to buy this Cd, it's gorgeous rich and gives me the chills, this woman knows how to arrange a tune.
The other unexpected treasure in this collection is "Santa Baby" led by Rev Run and the Christmas All Stars, that include Mase, Puff Daddy, Snoop Doggy Dogg, Salt and Peppa, Onyx and Keith Murray, before you get all, " those are hip hop stars, I don't do hip hop", you need to just listen , and then I'm thinking you won't make that statement again. It has an infectious beat, and isn't it time to listen to another version of this fun song, that might even be a little naughty.Other highlights are Jonny Lang singing "Santa Claus Is back in Town" this is raucous, and flirty and bluesy, and might make you want to start dancing, or have Mommy doing more than kissing Santa Claus, if you know what I mean. (wink wink, nudge nudge)

All and all I hope this music just makes for a happy, stress free holiday for you and yours.

snow days

Last Thursday ,we had a really good snow storm, well I guess the people that had to drive in it, maybe weren't so thrilled, but I was home it was my day off, and I was psyched!(translation excited.) My son was equally psyched, as he got released early from school, and they had a two hour delay the next day.

Then comes this weekend, and on Saturday night more of the white stuff arrived, except this time I was at work.Was I afraid to drive home in it? No, secretly it thrills me, what was not so thrilling, was that the city I work in and the surrounding towns, hadn't really thought that plowing should be their first prerogative. It was Sunday morning, maybe they hit the snooze one extra time, or had one more cup of the delicious coffee, before they went out and started clearing the roads, or maybe they thought who works on the weekends?

Me, I work on the weekends, and holidays, etc, and if you want me to get to my job safely, and take care of your sick loved one in the hospital, I have to be able to get there. Hospital's are open 24/7 they don't close down on holidays (wouldn't that be nice for me) they don't close on weekends, especially Friday nights, when college students feel the need to do one too many shots, and pass out cold, and then their frightened, but drunk friends, call the ambulance to bring them in. It also doesn't close during a snow storm , for those people that feel they need to climb a ladder to clear, the snow off their roof, and end up clearing themselves off too, into a bank of snow , bruised to a royal purpleness. No we're there to take care of you. How about returning the favor? So my one small request, clear the roads, when it's been snowing for the last 3 hours.

Did I get home that Sunday, of course. It puts another notch in my snow driving belt, I can now sign an affidavit, for the Subaru Forrester people, and tell my funny story how I drove home through mostly unplowed roads, in one of the lower drive gears, I didn't slip or get stuck. I did have some precarious drive and dodge moves where I had to avoid, people that were out in the snow and should not have been, but that'll be another charming post for some other time.

Do I have snow tires for my AWD Subaru, you betcha, but that's because they don't plow much at night either, just like on the weekends. When I had to return to work that night, and the big fat fluffy snow flakes were streaming before me, was I concerned, about the less than perfect visibility, No! Because the roads were plowed perfect, and after my drive in snowy cookie dough that morning, and few thousand snowflakes were nothing.

ps: to you snow plow drivers that were out before I was on the road Sunday morning, Thank you.

enlightened |day 104

enlightened |day 104, originally uploaded by ms.Tea.

"A lovely thing about Christmas is that it's compulsory, like a thunderstorm, and we all go through it together."
-- Garrison Keillor

my perfect tree

, originally uploaded by ms.Tea.

I know your saying to yourself, "no, i have the perfect Christmas tree", but I'm sorry that's not true. I have the most perfect tree, full of ornaments from the last 20 years.It's perfectly shaped, and fits in the room perfectly.
I'm all about the whimsical ornament, many are from Hallmark, with the little date mark showing. I also have an attraction to painted wooden ornaments.

One year my mother in law was getting rid of some ornaments she didn't want any more. I kept them and gave most of them to my sister, and kept the wooden ones for me. They're the ornaments i hang low on the tree, that are unbreakable. I know that's something my Mom did,but she had a lot of glass ornaments, where I have very few, mostly unbreakable, but i still hang the wooden ornaments at the bottom for the little ones in our family.

This tree is also perfect, because it's little branches can handle all different sized and weighted ornaments.Those little resin figures may seem cute, but they are sold and heavy, and not all trees can handle that.The hard thing with that is, if the branches are going to be strong most likely the needles will be pinprick sharp...and these are. So who ever said you can't put lights on the tree in leather garden gloves?

Lastly the scent, is divine.no matter how hard Yankee Candle may try they can never truly capture this rich pine scent, never.

once upon a time

There was this really cool cat, who first started as Opie (what an insult). Then we renamed him and he became Wyckett.Eventually that was interchanged with Mr. Wyck, to truly indicate what a gentle cat he was, well the birds might have had their own name for him like silent but deadly, it was survival of the fittest and he was practicing Darwinist. He was a very polite cat, he never scratched when he played with you, and loved the outdoors. You knew it was going to be a cold one if Mr. Wyck was snuggling in for the night. His only fault if you could find one was his need to be a bed hog, he never really curled up in a ball when he slept, he slept stretched out and long, like huge cat log in the bed. Initially he shot our waterbed a wary eye, but soon got over that.It was often a place he would sleep when the weather was chilly.

He was the first four legged pet we owned when we bought our house, we had always owned fish before in our apartment, but they for some reason don't really like to be petted.So when we bought a house, the next week, my son and I went to the Auburn Cat Hospital, to adopt a cat. We looked at a couple of yellow cats, one was too fresh, he bopped my son in the head,so he was definitely out. But Mr. Wyck, just waited, purred when he was patted, and we made our decision.The ride home was pretty uneventful, but I believe it was my son's coaxing at his wary meows, that helped him get through the ride.

When we arrived we brought him in the house,where he promptly hid behind the couch, once he came out, we showed him the litter box, from there he explored all aspects of the house, the room we were doing over, the crinkly tarps on the floor.He was able to open doors ,understood the theory of cause and effect, meaning if I push against this door it'll pop open. Which worked well the first night we had him, when he open one door into what was our now living room, and preceded to walk loudly across the tarps, and pop the door on the other side of the room to exit, which until I looked down, and saw his yellow tail, I was sure we had a ghost.

For our goodness of releasing him from the cat hospital we were rewarded with various mice, moles, etc, along our stone porch, as mere tokens of affection, I also sometimes got to share in the bounty in my Vegetable garden when he proceeded to eat a mouse in front of me, I just pretended the skull crunching was another noise , I may have had to hear it but I couldn't watch...ew!

He had developed into quite a character, he loved the snow, was out in all types of weather. He was very good when a few years after that we adopted Wilma our often nervous dog, he held his ground with her, never ran from her, always walked. He made it hugely easily to introduce a cat to a dog, who really wasn't sure she shouldn't maybe chase him. It was when his Zen Master qualities came to light, no matter how crazy the dog ran at him he would be still, which would make Wilma calmer, but also allowed her to sniff him all over. Which later on would leave some cowlick like furrows in his fur, from the intensity of the sniffing, but he never dignified that with anything more then a cat bath, to smooth all those spots back down.

He also wandered our neighborhood. One morning while waiting for the school bus with my son,
we observed him,coming down the hill across the street, stopping and looking both ways before crossing, the busy road, and greeting us from his nighttime journeys. I never feared his safety near the road after that.
Eventually though he must have had some mishap crossing the road, luckily he also had the strength, and size to survive this unidentified hit and run, was it a car, or a motorcycle, or someone unable to see him , going really slow, we will never know. He was missing for a weekend, but showed up on a Sunday night before I left for work with a few scratches on his nose, and either an abscess or a hernia, bulging out of his side, plus he was hungry! Off I went to work leaving instructions, don't let him back out, I'll call the Vet in the morning when I get home.The next day when we brought him, the Vet decided to keep him over night, so he could give him a thorough exam. It turn out once they shaved his belly he was bruised from chest to belly, with two fractured ribs, and a big hernia. With all that he was till healthy, purring, he just was shaved and purple. We waited a week to let the swelling go down then he had surgery, which my husband and my son, did perfect post-op care on him, as I was in London for the first time in my life.They gave him antibiotics, kept him inside, which from what they tell me Mr. Wyck didn't really push the going outside issue. When he finally was able, he never went out the front door again toward the street, it was always out the back toward our own wooded acre.

From there Mr. Wyck lived his life pretty well, there we still a few bird bodies, and he taught our "new little cat", as my husband like to call her still, even though she's not new or little anymore, how to hunt, and she eventually took over as hunter cat , under his cat tutelage.
He lived his years in cat naps, and walks, he still continued to go outdoors often and would roll in the driveway or the snow to great me. He also had taken to sleeping in at night.

I was looking forward to him being a very old cat. In September we noticed he was bony, and looking raggedy around the edges, I hoped he was just showing his age, unfortunately he was and he wasn't the vet told me the kind of belly mass was common in older cats, and once you could feel it there really wasn't much they could do. They never pushed the euthanasia issue, they told me to take him home, and call them if I thought it was too uncomfortable for him. Honestly aside from the recent scruffy old cat look he took on, he still was eating and purring , and going outside until the very end. After finding out his prognosis, my husband and I, and our son, talked about our views on how heroic and how long we should let this progress. We all decided we should do right by Mr.Wyck and not let it get to the point of discomfort for him , we owed him that , being he was a very special cat, and deserved, nothing but that.

I can tell you I was with him until the end, I liked to think it was good ,he departed seeing someone he loved, when we him brought to the Vets for his last visit.
It was quick, and they were so wonderful, with the dignity, they handled putting our Mr. Wyck to sleep, I know the word is euthanize, but until you have to choose to do it, sending a beloved pet to sleep, makes the heart ache a little less horrible ,just a little.

Now it about 3 months , I don't cry much now unless I see the mysterious yellow cat walking around, the neighborhood, and it makes me tear up, oh and there's that one song on my iPod, that has nothing to do with cats, or death, but makes me cry a little too, when I hear it .

I missed him at Thanksgiving as I boiled the turkey neck, he would stay close to home when that was happening, for there was a enough meat on that to make a cat all drooly and purry, and a permanent fixture in the kitchen for a few days.

I also missed him alot today, when it started to snow, and Wilma and I noticed the yellow stranger cat again, walking in the snow, exploring things. I know from just looking at him, that it's not Wyckett, but the view blurs as one tears up, and the shorter cat looks bigger and more sleek, and it tugs a little at those heart strings.Which loosens my eyes into a river of tears and makes me able to write about our Mr. Wyck.Who I like to imagine is enjoying his life up there, amongst the endless serving of turkey and catnip.Stretched out on a warm waterbed.

the view

Two things I sometimes do that gets me simple, but wonderful photos.One is take them out the window, when it 15 degrees, and I'm in my jammies.
Two is I also shoot pictures as I drive, before you lecture me, let me explain(rationalize) this behavior.
I shoot with my camera resting on my steering wheel and I slow down of course, and I look through the lcd screen on the back , just like it's a mini windshield, this of course means you have to have a clean windshield, and be okay with driving like an elderly person.
Now if you're elderly and taking offense at this statement, take a deep breathe and relax, I respect your wisdom to know speed kills. But so doesn't going 10 miles under the speed limit, on a sunny day, on dry roads, because all us younger impatient freaks will try and pass you in places we shouldn't. And the passing thing is worse than any speeding could be.

Why i love craigslist

Or better put, why I love, that my husband loves craigslist. We have had a lot of success with craigslist, two boats, two flat files, Mr. Bowflex. For less than half the original cost, sometimes less than a quarter of the cost. I don't care who you are, but you just can't beat that.
I look at it more out of curiosity, i haven't really found anything, but I love seeing what people are trying to get rid of. But my husband is patient and genius about it and finds really good things. Damn good things.
I am now the proud owner of another flat file, to keep my print making stuff organized and tidy, my papers flat and dust free.plus the fact that is cost was only 2 figures, and not the usual four, is something that makes me truly believe in karma, and ridiculously giddy and happy.
i love my flat file, they look so impressive stacked like that I am 5'4" and my flat file stands at 5'9"!
Perhaps my pair of flatfiles, are my next Secret really organized friend!