The Dackel Princess

The Friday Five ~ October 4th

I woke up this morning, looked out my window, and brushed the sleep from my eyes. Finally, our trees were changing color, reminding me that Fall was upon us. A smile came to my face!

This week has been full of progress. My plumber came and fixed my spigot in the greenhouse. For 25 years, I could not use it because it was installed incorrectly.
Then, my electrician came to fix the automatic lights in the driveway and install two spotlights in the backyard. With bobcats, bears, and whatever else roaming in the dark, I wanted light so that when I take Heidi out at night, I can see.
I had my car detailed. I cannot bend like I once did, so I plan to keep my nice car in good shape. He did a fantastic job!
I had a disaster with my hair. It got so severely overprocessed that it began to fall out. I was so upset. Then, my daughter suggested I visit her stylist for a consultation. Sure enough, at this point, I needed just to let it be—no more coloring of any type. But…I could get a pixie cut to stop the hair from breaking. One or two more haircuts and the damaged hair will be gone.

So, I have a pixie cut for the first time since Nursery School. One thing is for sure: it is easy to do. And yes. The curls are all mine.
My kitchen floor is due to go in in two to three weeks. The reno is almost done!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Old Cape Cod & Me

I have been thinking about life lately, perhaps because we have lost so many talented people who have entertained us.

It seems like just yesterday, I was climbing the jetties at Surf Drive Beach. Many people liked to lie in the sand and soak up the sun. However, as a child, I could never sit still.

We had picnics at the beach, eating somewhat sandy peanut butter and fluff sandwiches. It didn’t matter. Looking back, it was the best.

Imagine living in paradise and not even knowing this. So was my childhood growing up on Cape Cod.

All summer, I went around in bathing suits and bare feet.

Of course, back in the 1960s, I could ride my Schwinn bicycle all around town without worrying anyone.

Dairy Queen treats and trips to Elsie’s Restaurant, where she served the best German food!

Henry and Elsie Baumann

Life was simple and carefree, and today, as I am living out the final decades of my life, I appreciate that time even more.

The Friday Five ~ September 20th

Well, another week has gone by. This one was full of ups and downs, so here goes.

I was excited because I was determined to go to our local lumber company and order the last items for my renovation.
However, when I arrived, I discovered they do not do that kind of work. A girl named Kimmie told me that the flooring I want does not exist!
Then I was onto Lowes, where Brittany told me the flooring I want does not exist.
Yesterday, I went to a store that only deals with flooring, and yes, they do have the flooring I want.
When I came home, I ordered four chairs for the screened porch, but the site would not let me complete the sale. Then, my Amex Account alerted me to what they believed was a fraudulent charge. I called them, and they asked if I had ordered anything from Russia. Ah, no! So Amex is issuing me a new card. Daniel, the agent at Amex, told me to be very careful. He said that right now, fraudulent scams are at an all-time high. We will say that the entire incident just pissed me off.

So that’s my week. I am going in an hour to speak with my PCP about my Diabetes. I am not doing well figuring out the meal plans. I ordered a book but would love to talk to a nutritionist.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

9/11/2001 In Memorim

We can all tell you where we were and what we were doing on that fateful day in September.

September 11, 2001

It was a beautiful day here in New Hampshire. Sunny, bright, clear with blue skies. I was showering and getting ready for a dental appointment while Jack was shingling the house. It was a day like any other here.

Jack had the TV in our bedroom pointed out the window so he could listen to the morning news.

Suddenly, I felt a hand on my arm and Jack told me I had to get out of the shower now; something was happening. I was a little dazed and confused. I shut the water in the shower off and grabbed my towel.

Jack and I watched Fox News, ABC, and CNN in our family room. A plane had hit one of the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center in downtown New York City. Jack, as a former Airline Pilot knew immediately, that it was no accident.

While we watched, suddenly another plane came in and hit the other Tower!
We were both in shock. We listened to reports. No one was saying terrorism, not at first. But both Jack and I knew.

I look at this picture, and I know that none of those innocent people got out alive. That thought brings me to tears each time I see it.

We watched the Towers come down, one and then the other. We knew people had died. We just didn’t know how many.

At 12:30 I drove to my dental appointment. There was not another car on the road. Not one. I got to my dental appointment and found that I was the only patient that hadn’t canceled that day.

When I got home, we watched TV all day. I called my family and my close friends. Just to hear their voices.

It doesn’t matter your political affiliations or how you feel about war. What matters is on September 11, 2001, innocent people died in New York City, In Washington, DC, and in Shanksville, PA.

People like you and like me. Just because. That day I learned that we are no longer safe here at home.

I also learned that when our country is attacked in such a manner, we pull together and unify.

God Bless all who lost their lives that day, to their families, who will never be the same, and all who serve this country each and every day to protect and defend us.

September 11, 2001: Basic Facts

Chronology
8:46 AM Plane crashes into the north tower of the World Trade Center.
9:03 AM Plane crashes into the south tower of the World Trade Center.
9:17 AM The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) shuts down all New York City area airports.
9:21 AM The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) halts all flights at U.S. airports. It is the first
time in history that air traffic has been halted nationwide.
9:38 AM Plane crashes into the Pentagon. Evacuation begins immediately.
9:45 AM The White House evacuates.
10:05 AM The south tower of the World Trade Center collapses.
10:10 AM A portion of the Pentagon collapses.
10:10 AM Plane crashes in Somerset County, Pennsylvania.
10:22 AM The State and Justice Departments, as well as the World Bank, are evacuated.
10:28 AM The World Trade Center’s north tower collapses.
10:45 AM All federal office buildings in Washington, D.C., are evacuated.
1:44 PM Five warships and two aircraft carriers are ordered to leave the U.S. Naval Station
in Norfolk, Virginia, to protect the East Coast.
4:10 PM Building 7 of the World Trade Center collapses.

The Flights
American Airlines Flight 11
From: Boston, Massachusetts (Logan Airport)
To: Los Angeles, California
Lives: 92 people on board
Crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center at 8:46 AM

United Airlines Flight 175
From: Boston, Massachusetts (Logan Airport)
To: Los Angeles, California
Lives: 65 people on board
Crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center at 9:03 AM

American Airlines Flight 77
From: Washington, D.C. (Dulles Airport)
To: Los Angeles, CA
Lives: 64 people on board
Crashed into the Pentagon at 9:38 AM

United Airlines Flight 93
From: Newark, New Jersey
To: San Francisco, California
Lives: 44 people on board
Crashed into rural Pennsylvania (southeast of Pittsburgh)

Victims
Victims came from more than 90 countries around the world.
The following are the number of people who died at each site:

World Trade Center 2,823 (includes airline passengers)
Pentagon 125 (not including plane victims)
Flight 11 – 92 people on board
Flight 175 – 64 people on board
Flight 77 – 64 people on board
Flight 93 – 44 people on board

The initial numbers are indelible: 8:46 a.m. and 9:02 a.m, the times the Towers were hit. Time the burning towers stood: 56 minutes and 102 minutes. The time they took to fall was 12 seconds. From there, they ripple out.

That day, these first responders also died as they raced to the scene trying to save anyone they could.

343 Firefighters (including a chaplain and two paramedics) of the New York City Fire Department (FDNY)
37 Police Officers of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department (PAPD)
23 Police Officers of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) and 8 Emergency Medical Technicians and Paramedics from private emergency medical services.
1 Patrolman from the New York Fire Patrol

Fact Sheet
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC
August 15, 2002

The Friday Five ~ August 30th

Here we are at the end of the month and the end of summer. I went out to get the mail, and the traffic reminded me that it was Labor Day Weekend. Having grown up on Cape Cod, I am used to seasonal tourists. So, here we go with this week’s Friday Five.

My carpenter finished installing the new windows on my screened porch. It is now bug-free and beautiful!
The inside looking toward the lake.

I need to brag a little. I stained the wood used inside the porch 25 years ago.
Over the last few months, I’ve been keeping track of my morning blood sugar levels. When I saw my Primary Care, I brought the readings. She took one look and called in her nurse to take my blood, check the sugar levels, and get an A1C.
Well, much to my surprise, my A1C was 9.3! That is not a good thing at all.
It was determined I needed to start some medication that day. It was decided that I would start on Ozempic—a once-a-week shot. Getting old is not for the faint of heart.
Heidi and I are starting to recover from Lili’s death. She still sticks to me like glue, but I noticed she did well with two people who came to our house today.

She was happy and friendly and did not wee. Our relationship gets deeper and deeper.
So, things are settling down, and Heidi and I are both doing well. Tomorrow is laundry and vacuuming day. Ugh! Oh, well, it is what it is.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Lili Marlene ~ March 17th 2014 ~ August 21 2024

My sweet Lili was born on St. Patrick’s Day. When I picked her up at ten weeks, she was an eleven-pound ball of fluff!

I always wondered why she became so attached to Jack when I was the doggy chef and walker. But from an early age, she made it clear that she was Jack’s dog.

She grew so fast that she had grown into her ears in no time—such a pretty girl.

Lili was a fantastic dog. She looked after Jack when he was doing yard or snow plowing. And the day our house had a daytime break-in, Lili saved me.

She was beautiful and intelligent and always allowed Heidi to believe she was the Alpha Dog, although Lili knew that she was, in fact, the Alpha.

So, goodbye, sweet Lili. I will miss you always and forever.

The Friday Five ~ Aug 2nd

This week flew by. I got so much done and tried to catch up. I think I am finally getting there. So, here’s the news.

Lili is doing better with her medication. I’ve been spending time sitting with her and doing doggy meditation.
I’d been waiting for my box of meals to arrive from a meal supplier. They make the meals so there isn’t a mess.
I was so excited! But when the box arrived, it had been opened, was waterlogged, and had a meal missing.
I called the company and sent them photos. They said they would refund all my money. Last night, I cooked and tasted each remaining meal. It was horrible.
I made an actual grocery list on Thursday, which will be delivered on Saturday. Desperate, after a year of not cooking for myself, I will prepare meals again.

Life or Something Like It.

In recent months, while dealing with my health problems, I started to watch a lot of TV. What I found were a few often hard-to-digest truths.

Many genuinely gifted entertainers from back in the day are either gone from us or have aged so much that we no longer see them.
I went to Liverpool and took the Beatles tour. I thought of those four Lads from Liverpool and how they revolutionized popular music through the songs they wrote and the ones they performed. John and George died, and Ringo and Paul are in their 80s.
I now understand what my grandmother once told me. One day, you are sitting at a full table with all you love, and the next, half of your loved ones and friends are gone.
I will be 66 years old in November. If I am lucky, I will have 20 more years to live and enjoy my crazy life.
I sit eating my Cheerios in the morning, and I can’t believe how quickly I have lived 66 years.
We all share these feelings. If we are lucky and stick together through thick and thin, we can go when this life ends with a smile.

Lili ~ Part ~2

I thought I would do a quick rundown for those following the medical disaster my two doggies and I have experienced this year.

Heidi is finally well. She is on good food and medication and is returning to her sweet and happy self.

Meanwhile, Lili went to the Vets. I brought a urine sample, and they checked that and ran a blood panel. It was then that my sweet girl flipped out.

She fought everyone, including me. They’d never seen Lili have a nervous breakdown, and they were impressed. And not in a good way.

They asked about her behavior at home, and I told them it had worsened in the last year. There are days I am afraid she will accidentally hurt me.

So Lili got her prescription for antibiotics as well as a drug akin to Prozac and a tranquilizer if she was having too much of a breakdown.

I’ve been watching Grey’s Anatomy, and two main characters refer to friendship as “she’s my person.”

I think Lili’s person was Jack. Since he died, she gets out of control like this. I so wish I could sit her down and explain things to her. This truly makes me sad.

I know Lili loves me, but I know she misses her daddy.

I will go in a couple of weeks for my cardiac testing. Nothing gets your attention faster than being told you have congestive heart failure. I am on some meds now, and there may be more in my future as I am reminded almost daily that I am an elderly woman now.

Lili

For the last few days, Lili has been feeling poorly. She wakes me in the night as she frantically begs to go out. With all the wildlife in our yard after dark, I am not thrilled to grab my flashlight and take Lili outside. However, I did, and what I witnessed made me even more concerned.

I knew I needed to act quickly when a ten-year-old dog got diarrhea like this. The poor girl kept going and going and going.

I immediately put her on Heidi’s food for the weekend. I noticed a change immediately. I slept through the night, and Lili’s painful belly disappeared.

I am so glad. I can’t stand to see my fur babies not feeling well.

Darling Lili

The above post was written last night. This morning, I got up, and Lili had wee-wee’d all over the kitchen. Trust me, when a large dog wee-wee’s like this, it is a huge mess. And there sat Heidi in her crate, waiting to go out.

I put both dogs out, got my electric hard floor cleaner out, filled it with deodorizing cleaner, and cleaned the floor.

Tomorrow, I will bring Lili in to see our Vet. Lili’s history of accidents is that she never had them. Once she was housebroken at three months, she was good to go.

So Heidi is doing well, and now I have Lili to worry about. Heidi and I are keeping our fingers crossed that Lili will be well.