Dackel Princess

Things From My Weekend

Hey! The New England Patriots are going to the Super Bowl!!! Now I have to tell you, I am not one of those people who watches every moment of every game, but I do catch most of them, and I do enjoy a good win! The Super Bowl should be fun, and I am going to plan something for dinner that night that will be festive.
I spent part of the weekend cuddled with my heating pad. I have three weeks left until my surgery. I am anxious to get that behind me and to start feeling better. For now, I am in a holding pattern.
I had a software problem with my laptop being unable to speak to a machine that we store pictures on. I only had an error code to work with, and it gave me a general idea of what was wrong. It took me about an hour, and then I had resolved the problem. Yay me! I love it when I can figure things like this out.
We went and saw “Manchester By The Sea”, as everyone has been raving about it. I think the acting was good, but the story, and the direction was terrible, It was obvious that the writer /directer had no idea how people react in certain tragic situations. He was also quoted as saying that “New Englanders” are like this. Um, I’m a New England gal, who lost everything, but somehow managed to put her life together again and go on.
We went out to a Chinese Buffet that we both like and had lunch yesterday. It’s a family business, and we’ve been going there for years. It was a lot of fun.
Then we went grocery shopping. We heard that an ice/snow storm is due starting Monday night and into Tuesday. Nothing is worse than ice. I’m calling for an oil delivery at 7 AM.
Greta is better. Last Friday she was up every hour on the hour all night long. I suspected that she had another UTI so I started her back on the antibiotics, and after three doses she was back to normal. But she needs to be on them for another 5 days. I just hate to see my old girl (Greta is 13 years old) getting sick.
Later today I plan to make stuffed peppers and cranberry bread. Half of each will be frozen for use after surgery.

I hope you have a great week everyone!

I have had an amazingly good week. What this means is that I have been able to get a few things done, I was able to meditate the pain to a bearable level, and I actually went out on my own. So here are the top five things for this week.

I had not seen my dearest friend Carol in over two months. Carol is like a mother to me and I have known her nearly 9 years. I called her and we met for breakfast at Friendly’s and sat and talked and talked. It was wonderful!
Lili has been enjoying the cold, fresh snow. She loves leaping and jumping and running in circles. Oh the energy this doggy has!
I’ve been cooking and freezing, getting ready for the big day. I made Caribbean Banana Bread with spiced rum and it came out so well.
Tomorrow I am making tuna casserole and will divide it up and freeze half. Anything I can do to make things easier for Hubby after my surgery, I will do.
And lastly, we are saying farewell to Arnie and Anneliese’s daddy, Bernie. He was just a few weeks shy of his 13th birthday. He was a Master Earth Dog, and could track a wounded animal with the best of them. He sired several litters, but the ones I enjoyed the most were the 10 pups he sired with Greta. Rest in peace dear, furry friend. You will be remembered always by those who knew you and loved you, and by being the sire to all those amazing pups.

Bernie on the left and Greta on the right, during their first date.

TBT: The Fall of the Berlin Wall

We’d just returned to New Hampshire in the Autumn of 1989, when a few weeks later, the Berlin Wall came down. Our friends, Buddy and Ed, who were still living in West Berlin, invited us to come back in January of 1990 to experience the celebrations in the city during the reunification and also Grüne Woche (The International Green Week is a unique international exhibition of food and agriculture, as well as horticulture.).

Here I am with Buddy standing in front of the Wall, with an East German Guard staring back at us. He was very pleasant at that time and we were all smiling at each other. We traveled freely between the two Berlins and it was such a happy time.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

1. ASAP typically stands for ‘as soon as possible’. What else could it stand for in your life right now?

ASAP still stands for As Soon As Possible, as I am awaiting my next surgery.

2. Are you the last person to speak up in a group or the first to have an idea? Why do you suppose that is? Is it a good thing or no?

I have a big mouth and most of the time it is going. I’ve been told to quiet down and let others have an opportunity to say something. I think probably I run off at the mouth because I was the youngest in my family and always trying to make everyone laugh, so I talked a lot!

3. What do you remember best about being 12?

Joining Rainbow Girls and wearing a beautiful white gown that Mom made for me. I loved Rainbow, and the lovely things it taught me and the friendships that last, to this very day.

4. January 18th is National Winnie the Pooh Day. Which character do you relate to the most, and why? If you’re stumped go here for inspiration.

Well I guess Christopher Robin as I am unlike the make believe characters in the books. I did like the books as a child, although I admit they were not a super favorite.

5. What’s an app you use that helps simplify or make life easier for you in some way?

WAZE. I love this App. It warns you of speed traps, heavy traffic, gives you alternate routes and shows you where gas and restaurants are. We used it all the way to Savannah and back.

6. San Francisco (CA), San Diego (CA), San Juan (PR) San Antonio (TX) Sanibel (FL)…you have an all expenses paid long weekend to one of these destinations. Which one do you choose and why?

Sanibel. I immediately chose that because it is so close to where i used to live, and I could easily hop on the highway and drive to Punta Gorda to see my friends!

7. Share with us a song that makes you feel nostalgic? For what?

This song “Lonely Boy” makes me think of my late brother. The dates add up, his birth, then my sisters, and although he was Mel’s best friend, life was not always kind or easy for him. He had a brain injury at birth, and although he was talented and gifted in so many ways, many people could not see past his learning disabilities. He would be 65 years old now, if he were still alive.

This makes me think of him, of his struggles and then of his death at the age of 26 from cancer.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I made appointments for the dackels to get their rabies shots in 10 days. They are due right after my surgery, so we are going early this year.

A Little Lili Story

I had a shocking thing happen to me today when we returned from the grocery store. I had walked the dackels first, when we got in, and later Hubby was breaking up ice on the patio and Lili went out to be with him.

I set about to put things away, and I went into our bedroom and I glanced out the front window in the bedroom and there was Lili running around on the frozen lake below with two people!

I was so upset! We had this happen years ago when Fritz was young. I had put on my robe, boots, coat, hat and gloves, and marched down carrying a leash and clipped it on Fritz’s collar, dragging him home, yelling at him and telling him what a bad boy he was! After that incident, Fritz never left the yard.

Today, I was preparing to get mad at Hubby for not watching Lili, and had grabbed my coat, when I went to the back door and opened it. To my complete shock, in walked Lili! I swear she was smiling!

The dog down on the ice was not Lili at all, but another dog (an impostor I think!). Or maybe it was a memory, I thought!

Then I heard from my neighbors who saw Lili down on the ice. I hated to break it to them, that in fact, Lili had been home the entire time!

Lili has gotten to be an amazing girl. Almost all the time now she stays right at home and she never goes down near the road.

What a great friend she has become!

Dreaming

It seems lately that the dogs get me up well before dawn. In my struggle to fight boredom and to dream a little, I have found a web site where I can watch the cruise ships come in and dock in Fort Lauderdale.

It’s been a while since we have cruised, but I have always said that for me, cruising is the best way to actually vacation and relax. No meal preparation, no clean up, and no dogs. I simply show up every day and get spoiled.

It will be a long time until I can cruise anywhere. With my surgery and recovery, and physical therapy, I will need to be close to home for a while.

But I can dream, right? Dream of all those places I have been, and would like to visit. How does a 15 day cruise to Hawaii sound? Or a 7 day cruise in Alaska and a land trip of another 5 days? Or what about a cruise down the Rhine River? Or one around Australia and New Zealand?

Yes, watching the ships come into port allows me the chance to dream. And somehow dreaming about all of those places gets me through the pain.

Silvery Moon

I woke early today, when it was still very dark. The dogs delighted in an early outing, and as I went back in my bedroom and pulled up the shade, I was amazed to see the beautiful moon over the frozen lake.

It was still high in the sky, but cast a silvery glaze to the frozen objects below. Have you ever gotten a Christmas card with silver glitter sprinkled all over it? Well, that is sort of what it looks like here, this morning.

The dogs did not stay out very long. It was a mere 5 degrees when we got up! They all hurried back inside and then proceeded to curl up in their beds.

Me? I grabbed my coffee, my warm robe and heating pad, and curled up on my chair with Lili.

A rather nice start to a new day!

The Friday Five

It’s Friday once again, and this time it is Friday the 13th. I’ve never been too superstitious, so I’m not too concerned about this. Are you?

Here are this week’s Friday Five things that I am thinking about.

Yesterday I went through my books and have two large grocery bags for the Library, book sale. And two bags for the local Church lending library. I kept a few books that I love to reread, like The Harry Potter books, and a few others.
After that I sort of had to take it easy. My spine seems good for one small job per day and then I have to rest it.
I am really looking forward to my spinal surgery. I know this sounds strange, but since I have one of the best doctors performing the surgery, I finally see the light at the end of the tunnel and the end to my pain!
Hubby has been helping me get the house ready for my surgery. It’s all a matter of cleaning, organizing and preparing.
Is anyone else watching “This Is Us”? It has to be one of the best shows on broadcast TV. I love this show and the wonderful and unique characters! My other favorite show, “Homeland” comes back on, this Sunday night on Showtime! And lastly “Patriot’s Day” opens today at our local theater. We are planning to go to the opening showing at 1:00.

Have a great weekend!

TBT: Happy Birthday, Daddy

Today would have been my Dad’s 89th birthday. He’s been gone a long time now, but I couldn’t have January 12th come around, without thinking of my Dad.

Here we are, Mel, Mom and me with Dad, singing while he played the piano. This was in the newspapers advertising the fact the Highfield Theater was doing The Sound of music. Dad loved music. It was his whole life.

Dad and I standing on the balcony in Bermuda. My one and only vacation alone with my folks. We had such a wonderful time.

And here we are at the end of dad’s life. He made it to their 60th Anniversary before his health took a permanent turn for the worse. Miss you so much, Daddy and I hope you are at peace and filled with musical happiness in Heaven!

Life

I woke up at 2 AM with Lili. I went to the door and it was freezing cold and there was snow on our patio. Brrrr! At 6:30 AM, I got up with all the dogs and there was no snow and when I opened the door it felt almost warm at 42 degrees!

The dogs went running out and took their time, sniffing the ground and the air and enjoyed the warmer, drier, air!

Today I want to have Hubby help me to move furniture so I can vacuum and wash under them. I figure if he can help me move things, I can do the rest. I would like to get the heavy cleaning done in the next two weeks, so that the time after that, leading up to the surgery I can work on some, more ethereal things. Like meditation, and simple chair exercises.

Today is also meatloaf day. I plan to make a large batch of meatloaf and then put two in pans. One to enjoy now and the other to enjoy after my surgery. Comfort food for me is meatloaf and mashed potatoes! (hold the gravy) What is your comfort food?