Banana Pancakes, Yum!
Ingredients:
And then…there were two.
Tuesday was a very difficult day here. Our little Anneliese has not been well for some time. She had gone blind two years ago but still managed a good life. A few times she bumped into walls, but she would shake it off and go on.
She was operated on for breast cancer but seemed to bounce back. Even though we only expected to have her for a few months, she went a year and a half before going downhill. In the last week, she was not eating well, not excited about any table food we offered her. She told us that this was it. We had to let her go.
I thought back over her life. She was the last baby born in Greta’s first litter.
While her sisters and brother Arnie all came out quietly, Anneliese came out with loud puppy screams! It was as if she was saying, “Here I am World!”
She was the smallest pup in her litter, but the girl had spunk! She captured my heart and soul immediately!
As she grew I watched her closely. Her coat was tight and her form was beautiful. I knew that she was destined to have a litter or two.
Our first trip to Germany in 2009 was so much fun. No matter where we were as we traveled people were drawn to Anneliese. Her “wedding” was fruitful and she would go on to have 4 beautiful pups.
But it was our return flight from Berlin that presented me with my best memory of Anneliese. I filled out my Customs Declaration Form.
Well as I reached the Customs area I was directed to a man who was checking animals. He apparently wanted to see the “Wild Boar”. As I unzipped the travel bag, the man took three steps backward. Out popped Anneliese’s cute little head and we all started to laugh!
Anneliese was the kind of pup that loved people, but she was also reserved. Arnie is a flirt and gets all the girls, and Greta took no prisoners, she gathered fans easily. Anneliese was a happy girl who did her own thing. People loved her but in a very different way.
Since going blind, Anneliese became a bit more clingy with me. I would trip over her or bump into her, but that was okay. As long as she felt secure. I hand fed her, made sure she had her meds, and walked her each time with a leash, even in the deep snow and bitter cold. I wanted to always be there for my girl.
So today, it was just Anneliese and me who drove out to our Vets. I patted her and talked to her as I felt the life leave her little body.
Rest in peace, my darling girl! Thank you for being part of my life!
The weekend sort of slowly went by for me. As I am still getting over a winter cold, I chose to keep quiet, drink lots of fluids, and rest. At least half of the weekend. On Sunday it was sheet changing day and of course bed-making day right after.
I’m still engrossed in my book about ABBA, and it brings me back in time to when life was much easier. I had my girls in the 1970s and I listened to the radio a lot. ABBA was one of my favorite groups back then. And even now, all these years later, I still love so many of their songs.
I’ve also been watching movies, old TV shows, and just not focusing on too much happening in the world. I feel the hate each time I watch the news, so I avoid that at all costs.
Will it get better after the Inauguration? I doubt it. One thing that Covid brought to us all is depression. I do not see that going away any time soon.
So getting lost in books or old movies is a good thing for me right now. My brain just hurts from all the strife in the World.
Luckily, I have nothing happening this week. At some point, I need to make a grocery store run, but that’s about it.
Have a happy, healthy, and peaceful week.
It’s strange to be in the middle of January and have the weather be so dry. We had the big three feet of snow a few weeks ago but after that not much at all. It makes me wonder what the weather will be like for the year 2021.
So now, here is this week’s Friday Five, in no particular order.
So, that is the week’s Friday Five. I hope wherever you are that your weekend will be happy and safe.
When I was growing up my grandparents used to say that I looked like Papa’s sister, Kätchen. She was one year younger than Papa and they were very close.
Also, when Kätchen first arrived in Boston from Germany, her first friend was my grandmother. Both girls were 8 years old, and my grandmother, being the little teacher she was, enjoyed teaching Kätchen to speak English.
My grandfather told me it was love at first sight when he met Grandma Honey (Mary). And lucky for Papa he saw Mary quite frequently when she came over to teach and play with Kätchen.
Kätchen
As Kätchen grew, she blossomed into a strikingly beautiful woman. Her dark brown eyes and hair and fair skin were lovely to look at. She was also a sweet and kind person, and those who knew her adored her.
The beautiful Kätchen married Raymond on April 8, 1918, in Boston, Massachusetts. She died on January 10, 1919, in Boston, Massachusetts, at the age of 21. She was about to give birth to their first child, but the Spanish Flu epidemic was ravaging Boston. Her husband had been away at WWI and came back. Anxious to see his wife, he snuck in to see her.
Unfortunately, he carried the Flu into her and their unborn child. Kätchen became very ill with the Spanish Flu and a few days later she and her baby passed away.
Her husband Raymond lost the will to live and died in 1925.
Both Grandma Honey and Papa spoke of her often. In many ways, Kätchen had been like a sister to my Grandmother.
It is probably the reason I have been so careful during our current Pandemic. I know how easily a life can end if you are not careful.
I like to remember the good stories that Grandma told me about Kätchen. The games they played and as they grew Kätchen taught Grandma Honey to cook in her family’s kitchen. Two young women sharing their lives as best friends.
As our days grow longer, I am thrilled with the extra daylight. In the past, I always enjoyed the dark days of Winter, but this year, I am really enjoying the increase in daylight.
Perhaps it is because of the virus. But I truly want to enjoy daylight once again! It is so freeing. So very beautiful.
My Christmas tree is still up, and the wine bottle that my friend Rachel gave me for Christmas. It has an adorable snowman painted on it and is filled with Christmas lights. I love it!
Arnie is feeling better. The scabs on his back are flaking off and I can see wonderful healthy skin!
He has come a long way since Christmas Day!
I was down two pounds this week. I am feeling more in the groove with the diet once again. It is too easy to fall into old, bad habits!
I got the cutest mini Bluetooth speaker from Weight Watchers. When you track all your meals you earn points. I knew I wanted this and just as I was close to getting it last simmer they stopped carrying it. I checked the other day, and they had them again!
I ordered it last week and it arrived yesterday! I paired it with my Ipod and this morning, while I was reading I listened to music. It was so nice!
So that was my Tuesday! I hope yours was a good one and that you are happy, healthy, and staying safe!
It’s been almost a year that we have been on Covid Lockdown, one way or another. We wear masks that obscure smiles, we no longer linger in the grocery store to visit with neighbors or friends. We’ve all been isolated from all the ordinary things in life that brought us joy. I never thought about any of this in my life. Who would ever imagine having to live like this?
That being said, I have to say that my daily dressing habits have drastically changed. I used to get up, struggle to get into my jeans, a turtleneck, and sweater, to face the day. Once I was staying home all the time, I discovered leggings. Not just any leggings, but fleece-lined leggings.
At first, I would wear these just at home. But after losing 60 pounds, and having a knee-length winter coat, I began to wear them out to shop or get the mail!
You see, wearing a mask, hat, and long jacket, I am pretty unrecognizable! So in these days of Covid-19 why not be comfortable?
Our lakes are freezing, which means the sounds of an auger being used to open a hole in the ice for fishing can be heard each morning. There are people skating and enjoying the day. Small groups. No one wearing a mask. I suppose they feel safe outside.
I go out with Anneliese and Arnie every time they go out, in my down parka, hat, and gloves. At 22 degrees (F) it is cold. At least the sun is shining today and we are not expecting snow for a while. Thank goodness. I just paid our plow bill for December and the first part of January! Eeeek!
Well, that’s my weekend. Hope yours was a good one and that you are remaining safe and healthy!
I am having trouble with my shoulder again. It makes me quite angry because I feel like an old lady. I will be doing something easy, like scooping out a can of dog food for Lili, and suddenly pain grips my shoulder and I do things like drop the can or spill something.
I was actually supposed to get it x-rayed this week, but my doctor is out because she is sick. So I have to wait a bit for the x-ray. Meanwhile, I am living on Advil and Tylenol and I am hoping for the best.
It’s funny, you know, it’s not like I have done anything to injure it. The pain simply arrived one day and it seems to be getting worse. Old age, I am sure.
Meanwhile, this weekend I got caught up on laundry, read more of my book, and actually watched several episodes of a British comedy, “As Time Goes By”, as well as a movie, “The Queen”.
On Sunday I would like to put away my Christmas Stuff. Whether or not I actually do, who knows.
I love the lights and right now the little Christmas tree all lit up makes me happy.
Here we are now in the middle of the winter. I wake up each day and ask “Alexa” what the weather is. With that, she gives me the current temperature and the outlook for the day. She even wishes me a good day. I lead a very little life. Here we go now, with this week’s Friday Five!
It’s pretty interesting for a fan like me. And actually a good read. I put on their greatest hits softly in the background and read.
Yay! I am planning everything and writing it all down!
So that’s a few of the things that are happening here in my world. I hope you all are well and have a wonderful weekend!
My heart is broken. I watched my beloved Country devolve into a wild, rioting, hate-filled morass! No one was there to protest peacefully. They were there to damage and cause nothing but trouble. Four people are dead. There is talk of removing Trump because he has become unstable. Let Pence serve out the next two and a half weeks.
What we need is peace. What we need is grace. What we need is for those who do support Trump, to step back gracefully, and follow the rules and the laws of this land.
If they do not like our Voting Standards (Which I do feel have become corrupt and need to be completely revised.) then, vote for people who will work on changing the system. I personally like Australia’s Voting Standards.
For right now, we must work together for peace. We must repair our Country from the damage that has been done to it.
