Even In a Small Town

From a friend on her walk home:

Note: There are two public restrooms within a block or two from this location. But manbabies can't wait.

Meanwhile in Paris the precious manbabies get special street urinals.

While women get ??? Probably not adequate toilet facilities.

Not Going There Again

Handy and I decided to go out to breakfast on Sunday. Big mistake?

We used to go to this restaurant a lot and even when they were hopping busy you always got great service with a smile. No longer.

Have you ever wondered what it's like to be invisible? This is the place. We walked in to wait for a table to be cleaned. No one acknowledged us. No Hello, it'll just be a minute. They went out of their way to avoid eye contact.

Eventually they cleared a table and motioned us to it. Grudgingly a waitress gave us menus. Could we have coffee please? The coffee was brought and the order taken. Surprisingly, a bucket of creamer appeared on the table but no utensils for stirring it. Could we have utensils please? The utensils were brought but she didn't seem to know what to do with them, and sort of pushed them into a pile. I guess it was the bus boy's job to lay them out and she wasn't about to do his job if she could help it. The food arrived hot, which was also a surprise, but no coffee refill. Had to flag down a waitress, please could we have more coffee? The bill came right away, no surprise there.

We decided we wouldn't be back.

Funny thing, I had an upset stomach all day.  I wonder...

Lost Tower

Some months ago, we were looking at some artisan cards at work and one of my co-workers wondered where this spire/tower was. Right next to the bakery, said I, the local expert. (He lives out of town.)

But when I went out on break to prove it, the tower was gone. How long had it been gone? I was dumbfounded. I try to be aware of changes around town but clearly I missed something. It could have been gone for years. (Obviously, I took this picture last winter. Rain? What's that? I don't even remember.)

Anyway, this is what the tower looked liked. 

I wonder what other changes I've missed.

Is Organic Worth It?

This may stir up a lot of controversy. This is why I don't buy organic. $3.49 vs $.89.

No comments required.

Saturday Sights

We usually visit my M-I-L on Saturdays and stop somewhere for lunch on the way home.

Handy is always drawn to the guitar store. Thank goodness they have a comfy couch for non-guitarists to wait. He didn't even buy anything. I think he was only looking for straps.

Roosters about town!

Cat art sighting!

Here's a closeup of the cat that Handy took on an earlier day.

Floral Friday

I am enjoying a rare do-nothing day. Catching up on reading, Netflixing, and blogging.

Here are some random floral cell phone photos to brighten the day.

The Household

I have been negectful in my cat blogging.

Our darling Homer passed away in October after a long battle with cancer.

We were concerned how Francine would deal with the loss since she and Homer were close friends. They would often "talk" to each other and she would tip him off when she sensed the cat carrier out for a vet visit.  She is doing fine, however, and keeps the new minions additions in their place. She actually seems more social than she used to be. Perhaps our generous giving of cat treats has something to do with that.

These are the new additions, Harry and Leo. We were desperately wanting an orange kitten, and wow, finding an orange kitten was like trying to get Hamilton tickets. They kept getting snatched up before we could get to them.

Finally, we caught up with a litter. These two were the floofiest. Harry is a little more orange, Leo a little more buff with more white and a little mustache. How could you decide between them? So we didn't!

Leo.  Do not call him a kitler.

He's a creamsicle cream puff.

Oops, I forgot to load up a Harry picture. Here we go. Oh wait, I think this is Leo again.



This is definitely Harry. He's the more mischievous one. He likes to eat my hair. And string. And the cords on the blinds. And phone chargers. But he's adorable.




Hunter is the best big brother. He hangs with the babies and brings them treats. Live treats. What a guy.

So we're all up to date now.

Timber

Had a little whoopsie in the front yard Friday morning when a big chunk of the carob tree fell over about 5 am. Frank, whose windows face the driveway, heard a cracking and whoosh.

The whole tree will be taken down this week, as it's rotten at the base. It's lucky it fell towards the yard instead of the truck.

It may be time to re-landscape. I've been thinking about it for a while.

Angry birds

We saw this beautiful owl at a Ren Faire last weekend. He looks like one of our cats.

Waiting

Evidence

Me: Someone got into the paper shredder while I was out.

Handy: Probably one of the cats trying to steal our identity.

Me: Harry, I'm sure.

Handy:When you see packages from Chewy addressed to Harry Smalltown using your credit card you'll know why.

Handy: He might try to order a magnet for the cat door.

Me: Maybe he's not the mastermind. Maybe he's only the muscle.

Me: She's probably started a meowbox subscription.

Meta Bag

The only times I have visited IKEA have been to acquire furnishings for Ernest. This time, Agatha insisted on joining us. If you don’t know Agatha, you could follow her Facebook page. She was abandoned at The Book Loft and now accompanies me on various adventures. 

She was most insistent on having meatballs. 

And she adored the blueberry cheesecake. 

Ernest bought two panels and many hooks to hold his climbing gear. Agatha and I did not need anything (other than the meatballs and cheesecake), but we grabbed this giant bag at the check stand.

Do we need this, Agatha grumbled. It’s too big to carry me in. 

It’s a souvenir, I responded.

Humphf, humphfed Agatha. 

Ok, see? It has a use. It holds all my other bags. It’s the bag of bags. 

met·a

ˈmedə/

adjective

US

1. 1. 

   (of a creative work) referring to itself or to the conventions of its genre; self-referential.

Donut Thief Alert

So we have donut thieves in town, they periodically steal 3 donuts out of the box delivered early morning to the place where I would get my DONUT AND COFFEE BEFORE GOING TO WORK. Only they don't care about food safety issues. Of course not. They are f***ing thieves. The other 9 donuts are now unsafe food because their evil tainted hands could have touched them and there are food safety laws. So then there are no donuts for anyone. Sometimes I just hate people. Don't steal donuts. Please.


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Gnomespotting

I spent a couple weeks in Boston, cat sitting and wandering around. My beloved niece adores gnomes so my gnomespotting radar was on high alert.

I passed by this quartet on a regular basis on my way to the T.

I called the tipped-over one the Ohm Gnome (I know it should be Om but I'm surrounded by technical people so I used the electrical term in error).

The next week he had been righted.

Around the corner from Ernest's place is a home where the gravel yard is decorated with many 12" Disney figurines.  It took me many trips past before I noticed the miniature gnome village in this little corner.

However, the highlight was finding political gnomes at the JFK library.

All in all, a good bit of gnomespotting.

Signs of Valentines, or Pink Saturday

I haven't blogged for so long but here I am, still here.

And STILL so obsessed with Hamilton.  

I took Handy and Frank to see it in October.

I took Ernest and his girlfriend to see it for their Christmas present. 

During the last song, I turned to look at them and there were tears in their eyes.

Awww.  So I sent him this for Valentine's Day.  I got an Awww back.  

And LOOK what arrived at the book store!

A nice pink drink.

How to draw valentine cats.

And a blind date at the library!

I put a spell on you

Frank is cleaning his apartment and once in a while he finds something of mine stashed away in the cupboards. This time it was a basket of pictures. During a bout of boredom, I photographed a few.

These seemed to share a certain look. I feel sure I was hexing someone or something.

Book Picks

Around the holidays at the book store, we are asked to make some recommendations. In the past, it's been in verbal form at a staff meeting. This year, our beloved manager tried something different. Just write it down. I embraced it, even though I don't usually like writing these things! 

Having put a bit of effort into this, I thought I'd share them here. 

Non-Fiction: The Moth Presents All These Wonders, edited by Catherine Burns. This is my book of the year.  As I wrote on my shelf talker, I laughed, I cried, and for the brief time I was reading it I felt that the world was really wonderful once more. I’ve bought several copies for gifts. 

Christmas: Red and Lulu by Matt Tavares. Red and Lulu’s Norway spruce home is cut down and Lulu is trapped in the tree as it is transported to Rockefeller Center. Red follows and there is a happy reunion. Some of the most beautiful illustrations I’ve seen all year.

Picture: The Bad Seed  by Jory John (illustrated by Pete Oswald) and Escargot by Dashka Slater (illustrated by Sydney Hanson.) These are delightfully illustrated stories of spunky characters.I’m a sucker for talking seeds and snails and these characters are fun to read aloud.

Literary Fiction: The North Water by Ian McGuire and My Absolute Darling by Gabriel Tallent. The subject matter of these two couldn’t be more different: an ill-fated whaling voyage and a young girl’s abuse. Both are brutal and disturbing stories, but so beautifully and compellingly written that I had to finish and rated them both 5 stars. 

Feel-Good Fiction: Especially lately, people are looking for books that make them feel good rather than disturbed. High on the list, of course, are books by Fredrik Backman, Fannie Flagg, Jan Karon, Jojo Moyes, etc. A few lesser-known gems I have enjoyed are:  Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman, The Cottingley Secret by Hazel Gaynor, The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper and Rise And Shine, Benedict Stone, both by Phaedra Patrick.

Historical Fiction: Caroline: Little House Revisited  by Sarah Miller. In Laura Ingalls Wilder’s famous little house series, Ma was a saint.  Here is Ma’s story. You don’t have to be a Laura fan to like this book.

Cooking: Opa! Healthy Greek Cookbook by Theo Stephan and Christina Xenos. I’ve bought a lot of cookbooks for fun this year, but this is one I’ll actually use. These Mediterranean recipes look both simple and delicious.  Theo Stephan is the owner of Global Gardens in Los Olivos.

Biography:  Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery by Scott Kelly. What a singular life story he has!

Signs of Christmas 2017, A Beginning at Least

I don't know if I'm going to get a tree up or not, but I am up to my usual tricks with the wreath.

Here's a trick for quick and cheaty lamination:  clear packing tape. I thought of it myself, although I'm sure everyone else has too.

Tell me, has anyone ever done a hot glue gun project in which one has not burnt oneself at least once? Hmmm.  I thought not. 

A Belated Happy Thanksgiving

I practice a no-stress Thanksgiving. 

Serve dinner at 4, so I have all day to cook. 

Invite a small group of people. 

Simplify the menu. 

Have awesome family who help prep and clean. 

Wash up as I go. 

Watch Charlie Brown and Arrested Development. 

Laugh at my cats: one of them got on the coffee table and started tapping her paw on the treat bag. Message received loud and clear.

The Macy's balloons used to be a lot smaller!

This is my new friend, Agatha. She has her own facebook page, Agatha's Adventures.

Picture of turkey place, picture of turkey, but no picture of the two together.

Someone was in a food coma even before the turkey. He's not even a table scrap eather.

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