And Then There Was One

dog that is. Seems like our place is shrinking. We lost Oliver on Saturday, now here it is Wednesday and we have rehomed our dog, Princess. Now, Oliver was totally unplanned, but we have been wanting to find a home for Princess off and on for a while. Since we are moving this weekend, we became a bit more proactive in our search. A family came by last night and off Princess went. Now, Princess was (is) a sweet dog, but Lady really wanted to be an only puppy. While my two year old had another meltdown at losing another pet, Lady is walking around the house going "Princess who?". There was quite a bit of sibling rivalry with Lady and Princess, so much so that they constantly growled and barked at each other to get our undivided attention. One on one they were great, but together, ugh! So Lady is now the queen bee and is loving it. If the people come back with Princess I think Lady would block the door. But, I think Princess will have a good home. They have a 6 year old and a 2 year old and a chihuahua. No competition with another Eskimo. So, good for you Princess, you deserve to be able to rule your own roost, so to speak. So, now we are down to 2 cats, 1 dog and 1 bird. Things are simplifying over here, so much so that now I'm eyeing the bird... I like not having to be responsible for so many bodies. We could actually fit into an apartment now...as long as it's not a studio...

Sad Day

Yesterday was a sad day for our family. Our cat of 11 years, Oliver, had to take a permanent nap. Now Oliver is not our oldest cat, nor was he the kids favorite, but he was my special kitty. One cat loves my husband and son, and the other loves both my kids (or anyone who will hold her). Oliver was only my cat. He was rescued at about a week old when his mom abandoned him. Of course she did, he was suffering from respiratory infection and would never have survived unless someone intervened. It was interesting because I was actually trying to catch his sibling, but because he was so weak and sick he couldn't move. I took him home, then the vet. After dropping a lot of money and coming home with lots of medication Oliver came home to stay with us. It was only supposed to be a temporary thing because we had two cats. But, after weeks of bottle feedings, potty training, socializing, etc. he became a member of the family. Oliver even went to work with me, and being a temp at the time, was a big thing. He would ride to work in my lap. After a while he became my baby, and ultimately started a power struggle over my affections. Oliver thought he was my baby first, yet my husband thought I was his wife first. It was funny to see these two males posturing for dominance. Whenever my husband would walk in the room, Oliver would hiss at him and come over to me. Then, whenever my husband saw Oliver in the room, he would come up to me to give me a hug. After a while they reached an uneasy truce, and while they never did get along, they at least could tolerate each other. But, at the end, even my husband felt sorry for him. Oliver had sudden kidney failure and could no longer eat, drink, or use the cat box. He was slowly starving to death. My husband even commented that he looked like a concentration victim. As much as I love Oliver I don't want to see him suffer and so for him, we put him down. I will miss you tremendously. Even my two year old has been asking "where's Olver". My son has taken it hard as well. So from your family, I'm sorry and I'll miss you...

Stress and Depression

It seems like the body goes into shock...great things happen at the same time you are facing a depressing life changing moment. It is difficult to continue putting on a happy face when you are doing something you SOOOOO do not want to do. We are having to move from Southern California back to Northern California. We moved into an area where the economy plummeted, and just cannot survive here. I am in real estate and with every other home in foreclosure that's not doing well, and my husband is a contractor, yeah...that's doing well... Having to uproot and move away is not my first, second, or even third choice. Now let's add in the emotional impact of my husband telling his family we are moving away from them. To say they took it badly is quite the understatement. Now, I know you cannot make decisions to please other people, but when you already don't want to go, it doesn't help. My husband is their only support and it comes at a time when they need it the most. After taking his comatose brother-in-law for a hospital visit, he had to break the news to his sister that he won't be able to help her anymore as we won't be living near by. Of course she took it badly, but surprisingly so did her kids. All cried and pleaded for us to stay. We have been not only their main support, but their only support. Junior needs someone in his corner, literally, as he has another boxing match scheduled in a few weeks. It is just sad when they are offering everything they have, and even what they don't have, to try to keep us here. It is difficult to put a positive spin on it with others, when you are so not into it yourself. I am now exploring all kinds of options to see if I can pull off a miracle....I'm having a flashback to the song..."All I need is a miracle...." Will try my best....

Kudos

As a proud parent I have to acknowledge my son's accomplishment. He was just promoted to the 7th grade. The school has officially agreed to promote him. He has worked very hard, giving up his summer vacation, weekends, and school breaks to cram two years into one. That makes it two years that he has skipped according to the school system. He has never skipped a grade, but has done all the work. Nothing has been handed to him, he's worked hard for all his achievements. Congratulations!!!! Glad you enjoyed your cake and I'm sorry that's all we did for you. It all happened so quickly that we were unprepared. Thankfully you're a very understanding child. You are definitely the light of my life and I am grateful for you.

Endless Gratitude

I was born an only child. I have lived as an only child for more years than I care to acknowledge. About 5 years ago God brought a sister into my life. It's amazing that for not knowing me for 3/4 of my life, she totally understands me. We come from different parts of the world by birth and had two polar opposite upbringings, yet she understands me and I'd like to think I understand her. She is always patient, even when I call to rant, rave, or just ramble. The kids love talking to "Auntie" and she takes the time to even listen to a 2 1/2 year old. Now you haven't heard rambling until you've heard a 2 1/2 talk. If you knew the demands on her time, you would understand the depths of my gratitude. Many people are vying for her time, input, two cents worth (she's worth way more than 2 cents), advice, and recommendations, yet she takes the time to listen to me, even when I have hairbrained ideas. Not on purpose, of course, they make total sense to me... I hope her children recognize what a wonderful mother they have as I recognize what a great sister and aunt she has become to me. Lots of love and know I always wish the best out of life for you. Go for the gold, not the silver and/or bronze.

Congratulations

I have to send out a big congrats to my nephew. He has had a lot happen to him in the last five months. In January his father was in a major car accident, leaving him comatose. Junior has stepped up to the plate, shouldering more responsibility than any 22 year old should have to. He quit his job to run the restaurant, taking over for his dad. He now works there 6 days a week, working way more than 8 hours a day. In his off time (which is very little), he practices for his other career. Junior has spent the last several years preparing to be a boxer. Last Friday he had his first professional match. He knocked out his opponent in 1 minute 19 seconds. Now, I am not a big fan of boxing, although I did watch all of the Rocky movies, but I do support him. As a young Hispanic from the LA area, he could have gone in all kinds of wrong directions (yes it's a stereotype, but I've seen the kids he used to hang out with). He did start onto a wrong path, but got back on track. I never realized what a disciplined sport it is. He works out 3 hours a day, watches what he eats and doesn't drink or do drugs. He did so well in his match there is already talk of him having another bout in a couple of months. Hopefully I will be able to say he went 2-0, but for now he is 1-0 in his professional debut. Congratulations Junior. Your dad would be really proud of you. You've got a good head on your shoulders.

Ideas

Where do some ideas come from? Jerry Seinfeld asked how someone could look at a horse and think "hey, I could make glue from that". They are not related in any way, shape or form. Jerry's idea works on other things as well. Let's take a pine tree. Juniper berries are the berries that grow on pine trees. Now, who in their right mind would stare at a juniper berry, growing innocently on it's tree, and think "hey, I can make gin with that. And yet, that's where gin comes from...a juniper berry. What about barley. Barley is a cereal grain. What farmer, tired after a hard day of work plowing his barley field, comes into his house, and says, "dear, boil the barley because I'm thirsty". And yet someone had the bright idea to mix barley with yeast, call it a wort, let it ferment and have it come out beer. Apparently, I am not that far-sighted. Grains are for cereal and bread. Yeast is to make breads and other baked products. And a wort is, well, let's not go there. Add all those ingredients and it sounds pretty unappetizing, yet people guzzle it down because it's called "beer". Go figure.