Right now.

The view out my window is spring time. There are birds making bird-type noises and I can hear them because, although it's 5:25, the back door is open. It's cool, but not cold; the doors are open to let in to move the air around, it's stale in here from months of preserving the heat.

There are one inch buds on my tulip tree. I can't tell if they will be flowers or leaves. The maple in the back is shooting it's unadorned branches into the blue sky. The moon, somewhere around two-thirds full has taken residence in the sky already and is framed by the limbs of the gigantic pine tree that inhabits my back yard.

The crazy dog is making circles in the too tall grass. Her tummy is making funny noises and she is doing all her best instinctual dog tricks to make herself feel better. Sam is in his newest favorite spot. He likes to lie in the doorway. I think it has to do with his failing eyesight and being able to smell all the wonderful smells of outside, while still in the relative safety of the house. I would indulge him more often, but its still so cold.

My handsome friend is snoring upstairs. He worked this morning and will work tonight, a quick turn-around because I had hoped to visit my sister next weekend. It didn't work out but he arranged his schedule just for me. Some days it takes all my self restraint to let him sleep.

My hands smell like onions, and green chilies, and cilantro. A pot of pork and green chili stew is in the early stages of simmering on the stove. I'm making a huge pot. Some for a new mother. I also promised some to my brother, it's his favorite and he bought me breakfast this morning. We also went for a long walk around Kelly point, along the river in the sunshine.

There is a woodpecker surveying the yard from the top of the maple tree and the moon has moved since I took this picture. I'm also sure there is something I'm trying to say in this post. Something about sunshine on Sunday afternoon and the fulfilling rightness of my domestic existence. Yeah, something like that.

a tall order...

but none the less, a gradly noble idea.

house update #1

So, when I left to visit my friend in Colorado (a wonderful visit consisting of talking and passing the adorable baby back and forth while we coo-ed like idiots) my mom asked what the next house project should be. I told her I wanted a patio. This was after several other projects which I will discuss in the future. I had no idea if she would attempt it or how exactly she would interpret that particular desire, but I figured what the hell. Most everything she attempts is great, seriously, it sort of makes me crazy.

So, I came home and to my delight, she had framed a patio for me. A huge one, 16x10, I think. We spent a few days talking over the options. I had been collecting brick for a while and drew out some interesting shapes and came up with a general design, a combination of brick and stone with some interesting "white space" thrown in to break up the brick.

That's not what I ended up with. Nope, instead I spent about three times what I had budgeted...carried away by the beauty of the rock and mom's enthusiasm, and have an almost perfect patio.

This pile of rock:



which I'd like to point out is 2.1 tons of Idaho flag stone and 2.5 tons of black gravel...all of which we moved and placed by hand.

Became this patio:


I love it. I would love it ten times more if my ancient, super sweet and very distracted neighbor was not participating in the great mosquito growing experiement of 2010. My legs are a mess and I must smell amazing because I ALWAYS get bit. Grrrr!

numbers game

Myself
2 parents
4 dogs

800 square feet on the ground floor where we all co-exist
300 square feet in my bedroom upstairs (my bit'o privacy)
400 square feet in the unfinished basement(where my parents have set up a room)

11 days since they got here
2 number of trips it took them to find a house (yellow, cute and strangely, made of cinder block)
1 days for negotiation of a contract on said house
36 days until the closing date of May 31st

2 hours I've had alone in my house since they got here
0 number of trips I've had to take to the grocery store since they got here
2 number of times I've had to cook dinner since they got here
5 number of hairballs I can see from where I'm sitting

and yet, strangely, it has been easier than I would have guessed. I hope it lasts. Wish me luck!

my yard is no longer...

a blight on the neighboorhood. Or at least, not the front yard. (I'm the only one who can see the back.) I mowed, weeded, pruned and spread beautiful dark compost. I looked up to see, a few houses down, my neigboors, the whole family in the yard. The adults were sitting in lawn chair, the maybe 6th grade girl intent on her task, washing the car.

"Hey," I called down the street, "It looks like you got a pretty good gig going on there."

Mary Anne laughed, "She's our slave."

"I am not," The car washer paused long enough to protest, then resumed her work.

"How do I get me one of those?"

"Well," he said, "You just push that little button and wait."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Hmmmm, what button? and where? and probably most importantly, whose?

Oh my! Kittens!

I’m allergic to cats. They make my eyes swell painfully and I can’t breathe. But, my allergy is nothing compared to that of my brother and my father. All of us, mother and sister included are allergic to cats. That does not mean I don’t like cats or am not reduced to cooing and stupidly sighing at kittens like the ones playing in my back yard.

A momma cat has set up a home between my house and my ancient neighbors. She was living in their wood pile until Vicky, sweet though ancient, decided to barricade the pile to hopefully force them all to leave. It hasn’t worked, momma cat simply moved herself to my side of the fence, taking refuge under my arborvitaes and kept the kittens in the wood pile.

She made the move a few weeks ago and Sam actually first made the discovery. I let him out and then heard an angry hiss. More than a little convinced that he had stumbled across a raccoon or opossum I rushed out to see if I could interceded before my dog got is ass kicked. All 10 lbs of the momma cat (she is a slight thing) was reared up in panicked ass-kicking mode and Sam was motionless. I shoo-ed him inside and gave Momma cat run of the back yard. For about two weeks she’s been guarding the back entrance to the wood pile and Sam has been giving her a wide berth.

Until I looked out the back yard this morning, I wasn’t sure how many were living in that space. There are three, currently playing between the potted plants on the tables in the back yard. And I don’t know what to do about them. I’m sure they won’t survive the winter and Vicky is sure they are too feral to be taken into the humane society. Animal control offered to catch them, fix them and then bring them back. I have no idea what that would accomplish, I mean besides preventing further litters. I’m not sure how it’s going to keep them alive, as it gets colder. I have an old dog crate, I’m thinking of seeing if I could waterproof the thing and add a blanket. Ugh. These babies are too cute and too skittish.

(This one ran back to the fence as soon as it heard me at the window.)