Friday the 13th

Not that anyone besides Ed ever checks this blog, I felt that I needed to update it anyway. It's been quite a time over the last two months, so it was time to write something. 

Much has happened in the last couple of months. Been dealing with some health issues due to stress, decided to leave my job at CCS (11/20 will be my last day), and my mom passed away on 10/30, which hit me hard. She was doing pretty well overall for awhile then about three weeks before she died she took a downhill turn due to her heart. But she was joyful and talkative until the last four days or so when we had to put her on morphine and then she just slept a lot. I was blessed to be able to be with her when she died, as she was awake and knew I was there. It was the best gift ever. I have had so much love and support from friends and family and Ed that it has helped a lot, but it's still hard. Mom and I were very close, and it's going to take awhile to heal. But I know her spirit is with me every day.

Finally Fall

I can't believe it's now officially Fall. How did summer escape from my grasp? But it was such a busy one due to the move that I shouldn't be too surprised. I can't wait until I'm done with my old place (which should be by this weekend), so I can truly start to enjoy how lovely the Valley is. I still want to have a chance to ride my bike around the neighborhood and walk on the Trail more before the weather changes too much. It still feels like summer though, at least this week. And I'm going to rent my house to a good friend for at least six months, so that will take some pressure off of me.

As for other news, been to some fun concerts — John Tesh, Bruce Innes with Original Cast, David Cook, Keith Urban, and this Friday it's Jason Mraz and next week Bryan Adams. It's been very fun, but also takes time away from the property, and I'm starting to feel the pull. But I'm not sorry we're going. Keith Urban was my favorite so far. He is such a good performer.

Also almost lost one of my kitties which was scary. Pipot has become diabetic, and he had a seizure from too much insulin, and I almost lost him. But he made it through it, and now the vet has him on a much lower dose. He seems to be doing great now, and is having fun playing in the field next door. In fact, all the kitties are loving the new place. They love the space and freedom. I do keep them in at night though as I know there are critters around that could hurt them. But they seem happy to come back in at night.

That's about it for now.

End of August

I can't believe it's the End of August and this long since I updated this. But considering all that's been going on I'm not too surprised. Finally got moved into the new home in Greenacres with Ed which is the main thing. That took a lot of my summer and was a lot of work. And I'm still not done, especially with my old place. But I love it in the new place as it's so peaceful. And the animals are transitioning just fine which makes me really happy. I'll see if I can get some new photos soon and while everything looks so great out there so I can post a couple. I did get one quick weekend trip with Ed in over in Seattle which was nice as I got to meet some of his relatives, and one quick weekend with the gals out at Coeur d'Alene lake, so I have gotten some fun and sun in.

Hot days

So, our July has turned out to be quite the hot month. Go figure then, that it's the time of the summer that I decided to get four yards of gravel delivered and move it all over three of the hottest weekends that we've had. Hard work, but good exercise and makes the place look new again. Why I didn't do it last summer is the stupid question versus this summer when I'm going to move. But I figure that if I'm going to put my house on the market, I want it to look as nice as possible. I also need to paint the fence and do cleanup work inside, then I can move with a good conscience. The middle of August will be here before I can blink, and then it will time for the next new adventure. It will be hard to say goodbye to the place after almost 11 years, but I'm excited too!

What a week

Well, this ended up being quite a week. Losing Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, and Michael Jackson all in one week. The latter being the biggest shock. And on top of that, I almost lost one of my favorite kitties, Thor. I thought when I left the vet's office yesterday that I would be putting him down today, but he is rallying. A urinary tract infection that I didn't know he had, turned into kidney problems, so he is spending four days at the vet's on an IV, and then we'll take it from there. But he is such a sweet and special cat, it is worth it to get him back on track. All the folks in the vet's office are in love with him already. I'm hoping that the weekend will be quiet and things will settle down a bit as I'm pretty mentally and emotionally pooped after yesterday. I'm so glad he's on the mend, and that I'll get one of my favorite buddies back on Monday!

Cats

So, who says one has to buy expensive cat beds for one's pets? Tuffy and Pipot showed me last night that carboard boxes from Costco will do just fine, thank you very much. In fact because I put a rug in the one, Tuffy slept in it all night. He was still in it this morning when I got up! And note his petite size. The cat is the size of a small bobcat.

On other fronts, Ed and I spent our first full night out at the new property last week. Just had a date night out there. Had a great dinner, sat out on our covered balcony and watched an amazing light show from Mother Nature like a couple of kids, and watched a movie on his laptop as there are no TVs at the place yet. But we did at least have a bed to sleep on as the Murphy bed is still there. It's most likely going away though so I can have shelves in my office closet as that's the room its in. My all-nighter days for work are hopefully over, so sleeping in my office isn't necessary!

A month already

I can't believe it's been a month since I've written in here. Just been very busy. Doing yard work at two different places, working, house projects... It takes a lot of work to get ready to move. It's still a good two months before I move, but there is much to sort through and do. I've already taken a few loads out of art and small stuff, but the main move won't happen until the place is done. Ed is doing a great job of keeping all the workers on task, and it's not an easy job. I can barely pay attention these days, so it's good to have someone so organized tracking everyone.

Had to post this photo though. It's Pipot in the opium den. Actually, I have a good catnip crop in one of my front flower beds, and it has a pot in the center that i didn't plant this summer (for obvious reasons). He loves to go out there and plop down in the middle of the catnip and nap. Then he'll wake up and eat some more and nap some more. He's a great cat.

Trip to Seattle

Had a wonderful trip to Seattle last weekend. Ed took me over to see Michael Tomlinson in concert, and I've been wanting to go to one of his concerts for the last couple of years. It was so fun to get to go. We also got to visit Ed's parents while there which was nice, stay in the Hotel Max in downtown Seattle which was a unique and artistic place, eat fabulous food at Duke's by Green Lake, and yesterday morning got to explore downtown Seattle a bit and go to the Market prior to driving back to Spokane. It was a short trip, but a full one, and it was nice to get away. Ed and I always have a good time on road trips, and it was a special one for us both.

Been awhile

It's been a couple of weeks since I've updated this as I've been very busy. Been doing stuff both at my house and the new place, and we're making some progress. Ed has lined up some of the workers for the new place, so that will start soon. Also bought a new fridge and washer and dryer, and a new dining room set. We're both going to sell a lot of stuff and get things more in line with our new journey. I've also been trying to do some yard work, though the weather hasn't cooperated much.

Dealing too, with the upcoming state budget cuts. We're most likely looking at reduced hours and days this summer, going to four, nine-hour days and losing four hours of pay a week. That is in lieu of cutting jobs. Hopefully I can make the hours up with freelance work. And on the days I can't, I can get ready for my move. It will work out all in all. Trying not to stress about it as that doesn't accomplish anything. Until next time...

So excited!

Well, here it is a week later, and it's finally spring. We've had wonderful spring days since the snow melted a week ago. I have managed to clean out all my flower beds, and anxiously await the arrival of the flowers that are coming up. I love the newness of spring. It's such a rebirth. I even washed my car too, which was way past due. It looks so much happier now.

The house closed yesterday, and Ed and I are so excited. Every time we go out there, we fall more and more in love with it. His best friend, Dean, came over from Seattle yesterday for it, and the three of us went out there last night and had champagne to celebrate. It will be hard to have patience and not move out there until at least August, but the fact that I have to do so much still at my place and Ed at his, makes it doable. But come the end of summer and into fall, we will have a wonderful place to be. I'll keep adding photos as the remodeling happens, and things progress!

More snow

Big sigh as I woke up this morning to more snow. I just keep thinking that winter is finally over (and technically it is!), but Mother Nature seems to continue to have other plans for us. I'm hoping that if the weather folks are telling the truth, that I may be able to start doing some yard work this weekend. It's supposed to get into the mid 50's, but who knows at this point.

Also, if all goes well, next week Ed will close on the house he is buying. Then the fun can begin, which will be to line up painters, contractors, etc., to do the things we want to do to it. It will also mean a summer of sorting, selling, cleaning and moving, plus dealing with three properties, but come fall things should be calmer.

Just got back on Monday from a four-day trip to Ann Arbor, MI, for my aunt's 90th birthday bash. It was so fun to see so many relatives, some I haven't seen for 31 years. My two youngest cousins, Roy and Robert, have grown from small boys to strapping men with families of their own. It was so great to see them and visit as adults. The time was way too short though, and I was wistful leaving people that I love, knowing it will be awhile until I see them again. But the Italian in us bonds us for life, and the connection is always there. I feel proud to have the Adamo blood in my veins and have such wonderful family!

3.23

How can it already be Monday again? Where do the weekends go? Just a short post today, but I had to get this photo posted. I finally got a photo of Thor perched on my head. He loves to snuggle up and wrap himself around my head in the mornings. It's quite comforting actually. He's a sweet cat. Also, Ed and I found a house on Saturday. If all goes well it should close the first part of April. It's a great house out in the Spokane Valley, not far from the Centennial Trail. There will be a few months of doing things to get it ready but it will be wonderful. It already is, but we both wanted to make some changes. Pretty exciting!

Also, if anyone is reading this, please think about contributing to HSUS to help stop the slaughter of baby seals which has started in Canada, and about helping Defenders of Wildlife stop the aerial shooting of wolves in Alaska. Both are such cruel and inhumane treatment of animals, and just don't have to happen. Thanks!

Been awhile

Haven't update this in awhile. Been busy house hunting with Ed, and being sick. Just my wonderful spring sinus infection that showed up like clockwork. But some good drugs and rest helped me kick it faster than normal. Actually I hate taking drugs, but antibiotics are the only thing that help me kick one of those. I've had some doozies over the years.

The photo I attached is my new crush, Ava. One of my co-workers just got her a couple of weeks ago and brought her into the office for a few days. Weimeraners are just such beautiful dogs. I even got to baby sit her for a half day, and she was so much fun. Kept trying to steal my tennis shoes. Actually, it sounds like she has quite a thing for shoes and is a bit of a klepto. I told my co-worker maybe she should be named Imelda instead, after Imelda Marcos.

I get to go to Ann Arbor, MI soon for my aunt's 90th birthday. Ed is going with me. What a brave guy. He'll get to meet my Italian side of the family. But they're fun folks, and I haven't seen some of them for many years. I wish my mom could go as it's her sister, but she can't travel anymore. So we'll have to have extra fun for her sake. I don't like to fly much, but after this winter, I'm glad to get away. Just a change of scenery will do me good!

Rain

Monday again. Seems to be my day for updating things in here. I loved the rain last night. Took Harley out for a great walk in the dark and the rain. It was so nice to be walking at night and not dodging black ice. Just getting to walk at a normal pace was such a treat. On the way back, at the corner of 39th and Manito Blvd, I heard a noise at a dark house, and all of a sudden a white-tail deer darted off their porch and into the street. Just stood under the street light and stared at us for a minute before wandering down the street. Very weird to see one in the residential neighborhood. Cool too.

I also got to go to the movies with my niece, Janessa yesterday too. Went to see Coraline, in 3D. Now that was fun. Took us both a few minutes afterward to get back to normal — we were both a little dizzy from it. The technology now is so amazing. Strange little film, and even a bit scary. But the animation was great.

Tired Tuesday

One would think a person would be rested after a three-day weekend, but not this girl. I just seem to wear myself out on a continual basis. I had a great weekend, just tired me out. Had a wonderful Valentine's Day with Ed. Got spoiled rotten. Got flowers, candy, an 8-gig thumb drive, went to dinner and a concert. Got to see Chris Botti, who I love. Great trumpet player. We even got hugs from him later in the evening, just by chance. We had the opportunity later in the evening after the concert to get a photo with him but we didn't have a camera with us, so he just hugged us instead. How fun is that?

Sunday I worked on freelance most of the day, and yesterday we looked at houses all day. Ed is going to put a bid on one as we finally found one we liked. It's a great house, in a private yet convenient to town location. On 20 acres. We'll see how it all plays out!

How can it be Monday again already? The last week just flew by! But I've gotten really busy again as far as work goes, so that makes the time zoom.

I wish I'd had my camera with me last weekend when Ed and I went house hunting. The last house we stopped by had a whole herd of mule deer in the back yard. They were just milling around casually, and enjoying the sunbeams. There were at least 20 there, and they were so beautiful! We haven't landed on anything house-wise yet, but it is so fun to look. So many sizes, shapes, colors and locations. But we have time, and don't want to settle for anything less than what we feel will fit as many of our criteria as possible. Luckily for us, we're in agreement on every level, so that makes it easy. And how nice is that...

Groundhog day

So, my trivia lesson this morning was that I learned that Groundhog Day was first celebrated in 1886. Amazing what one can learn from the radio in the car on the drive to work...

Great weekend. Ed and I spent Saturday looking at houses and property. What a fun thing to do. Interesting to see how others live and what options are available around this area. I think we wore our realtor out though, but we were like a couple of kids until the end. Not that we're in any hurry to do anything, but it's fun to look anyway. I've always loved that. The attached photo is just one of two areas we were driving through where we saw deer. And being the animal person that I am, I had to have Ed stop so I could shoot them. At least I just do it with a camera!

Birthday

I had the most wonderful birthday. Got to celebrate on Thursday night with my "Bloom'in Warrior" women friends, on Friday night had a wonderful dinner out with my sister and niece at the Melting Pot, and Saturday got treated by Ed. Went to see "Inkheart" which was a fun movie, then went to Twigs for a drink, then to Commelini's for a great Italian dinner. An interesting place — old Italian mafia heritage. Even Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelly used to visit there. Also got to see a great blue heron fly into the pond area by Twigs, and saw a deer on the way home from dinner. Luckily it didn't decide to run out onto the highway.

The Melting Pot was also very nice and a unique way to eat dinner as it's a fondue restaurant. My sister treated all of us which was lovely, and it also wasn't cheap so it was very nice of her. But a fun, relaxing way to eat and visit. Took us almost three hours for dinner and presents, and we didn't leave hungry. All in all, I feel blessedly spoiled!

Survived my birthday

It's Friday, and the day after my birthday. I am now officially 53. It was a very nice day. Started out with Ed stopping by my workplace and bringing beautiful red and white roses that smell heavenly, a card, and nice music CD. I had many nice calls and warm wishes throughout the day as well, and a decadent chocolate cupcake my boss bought me at Starbuck's. And as anyone who knows me well knows, it will take a week to for me to eat it! Met seven of the gals from my women's group after work at Rock City, where there were many hugs as we haven't seen each other for two months. We were all having serious withdrawals. We also exchanged birthday and belated Christmas gifts, had wine and food and laughs. When I got home, Ed showed up with copious amounts of cat food and kitty litter for my brood, and dog bones for Harley. It was thoughtful of him to do that. It's not cheap, and it's not light to carry. But it was very much appreciated!

Historical day

This is a day to remember. I think this is the first time ever that I have been so moved by a new president being sworn in. I pray so hard that President Obama can help us turn things around, not only in our country, but in our relations with other countries. It gave me goose bumps to hear his speech.

On another note, I wanted to post the other tree photo that I shot on Sunday. It was so great to walk Harley and be warmed by the sun after so much gray. I could almost hear the trees give a cumulative sigh of relief as the ice crystals fell off of them as the branches were touched by the sunshine. Today they are frosted again and we're back to gray, but the respite was much appreciated!

Sunshine!

Well, I decided that this is a gratitude day. The sun is finally out after some gray, foggy days. This will be a good day to walk Harley, and also go to Snap Fitness to work out. I feel so much more energetic when the sun is out. I also want to shop for belated holiday presents, and do some art. I'm grateful that I have a three-day weekend so that I can get a lot of things done that have piled up a bit. Yesterday I cleaned all day, and that felt great. I love my animals, but they do create extra work. Tomorrow will be another busy day, but I know I'll get all that I need to do done. I'm grateful mostly for the sun today. It just makes everything seem lighter!

Finally Friday

Well, it's Friday. And foggy again. In fact, the trees in my neighborhood look like they've been flocked. I'll take a photo this weekend and post it. I took Ed to the airport this morning at 6 am, and it was so foggy I could barely see to drive myself home. It was pretty scary for a few minutes. But I made it home.

Ed flew out this morning to go to Florida. Without me. What a brat — he gets to go see some sunshine. Maybe he'll bring some back. Actually in all fairness, he invited me to go along. I'm just trying to save my vacation time for a trip in the spring to Utah, so hopefully that will happen this year. And he can rest assured that while he's gone I'll be partying all night long with younger men, and being totally wild. And I said that just because I know he's going to read this. Actually, I'll be having an exciting time cleaning litter boxes, cleaning house, hanging photos at my mom's apartment, and doing some belated Christmas shopping. The most exciting part of my life is waiting three hours for his next flight out of Detroit to Florida!

Chair races

I now know to what depths of despair people can get into during the winter. And also how to get out of it. Today I got to participate in the first ever (at least for me), office chair race and parade. If one can imagine five grown women inching their way across the office and into the boss's office by pulling themselves along sitting in their chairs — first moving forward, then backward. I have to say though, that it's something I should do daily as it was pretty much a total body workout. When one moves forward it works the hamstrings and abs, and when moving backward, the quads. Maybe some of the local fitness centers should implement it into their routines. But the best part was just how stupid we all looked and how hard we were laughing. Better than any antidepressant on the market!

Nice to walk normally

Just a short post today. Went home during lunch today so I could give Harley and me a walk, and it was like heaven. We both got a bit muddy as the roads are wet, but it was so nice to walk at a normal pace for the first time in about a month, and getting to walk without yak traks on my boots, and to wear my tennis shoes versus boots. My spirits feel like soaring today versus hiding in the closet!

Foggy Monday

Well, it's a foggy Monday, both inside and out. Even my coffee doesn't seem to be kicking in very well today. And it was another morning of creeping down the south hill at about 5 MPH. Bumper-to-bumper traffic again, and I'm not even sure why as it wasn't that slick today. I think part of it was the confusion at the bottom of the hill where all of a sudden three lanes turns into two, as people in the middle lane figure out that there is a big snow berm in the middle lane and they suddenly have to shift into one of the two open lanes. It will be nice when all the berms are gone.

It was a pretty quiet weekend. Got a lot done around my house, my partner, Ed, made a lovely dinner for our friend, Harold, and me, and we had a good visit. It was sad to hear all that Harold had gone through losing everything in the fire, but he seems to be doing OK so far. I'm sure part of him is still in shock though. He has much to deal with. Got to see my author friend, Sherry, on Friday night and it was good to see her. I really miss my women friends as I hadn't seen any of them since Thanksgiving. The weather cause almost all of my holiday activities to be canceled, so I didn't get to see any of them this year. They are such an integral part of helping me to keep my balance. So I'm hoping over the next couple of weeks I can catch up with most of them and be more social again!

Sunny Friday

Well, the sun is out again today, but it's colder. I got to creep down the south hill again today with all the other drivers who were inching their way down the slick hill. I'm not sure why the de-icer trucks weren't out last night, but they weren't. So bumper-to-bumper we went yet again.

The new photo was taken last night. I wanted to show my happy lights that once again get to shine. Also to show how much of the snow melted in the last two days. I have probably lost about two feet so far, which makes me happy.

I heard from my friend, Harold, last night, and he lost everything he owned including his kitty, all his photo equipment, and his life's work in photos, in a house fire this week. TWO house fires to be exact, as the house caught on fire two days in a row. The second one took everything. It just breaks my heart for him. It really makes a person think about how long it can take to build a life, and how quickly it can all just disappear. And how fragile it all is...

Spring-like day

What a lovely day here in snowy Spokane. After three weeks of shoveling and wondering whether or not my carport will collapse, we have had a break. The Christmas lights that are on top of my chain link fence finally got to shine brightly last night for the first time in three weeks. I'm going to leave them up awhile longer as I feel they got short-changed over the holidays. Once in awhile they would start to burn their way through the snow just to be covered again by the next storm. I hired a couple of angels three times to shovel the snow off the carport, and once to shovel the snow off my house as it was too deep and too much for me to do. I'll be forever grateful for their help. Today was the first day to go the speed limit, and it made 30 MPH feel like 60 in perspective. By the weekend I may even be able to walk my dog without having to strap the yak traks to the bottoms of my shoes. The warmer breezes and sun breaks feel like a little slice of heaven despite the havoc they're causing in the way of potholes and flooding. The dripping in my kitchen has finally stopped after two days, and the damage was minimal — a little fresh paint come spring should fix things up. I feel lighter today than I have in awhile!