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"Life doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful."
- Unknown

"That which does not kill you, makes you stronger."
- Handed down through the ages.

"Life's tough. It's even tougher when you're stupid."
- John Wayne



Nothing Much. Really.

Good morning, friends - 

I've slept a solid 12 hours on all three of my last mornings off, but I dragged myself outta bed after "only" 10 or so this morning.  Feel like I've been run over by a truck, though, and it's taking me a while to get my body & mind clickin' in gear.

And, again, I really feel like I have NOTHING to say . . . so we'll see how I do here.  

I haven't taken any pictures in an age, so I'll try to do that today while I'm getting things done.  The big 3 items on the day's schedule are office work (I *have* to get invoices done!), mowing the front walks (don't know if I have enough gas), and changing the tires on the car.  I've got my annual (medical) check-up scheduled for this coming week in the town 3 hours south, so I want to make sure I have good tires on for that.  And that means putting them on this AM so I can make sure they don't have any leaks.  If they do, I'll have to change them again tonight (no time to do so in the morning before work).  Fortunately, the heat wave has finally subsided a bit, and it is a GORGEOUS day out there with temps in the low 70s (in the shade, of course) and nice wind.  I'm hoping the bugs will be minimal enough that I won't have to wear head-to-toe netting and clothing. 


It's been pretty adorable these past few mornings:  when I wake up - usually underneath only the sheet due to the temps - I gradually register little bodies snuggled against me.  The three cats (geez, I sound like a Cat Lady!!!) each have a spot that they claim at some point during the night - curled smack up against me.  It's nice!  :)  And, oddly enough, not too warm as I'd expect them to be.


Since Maisy died, Tucker's been sleeping upstairs in the bedroom every single night.  He NEVER used to sleep upstairs as the stairs are a little tough for him and his 4" legs.  Often, he won't be ready to come up until I'm juuuuust falling asleep . . . when he'll bark from the bottom of the stairs.  Eyes closed, I'll fumble for the light switch at the side of the bed.  I'll imagine him scrunch up his long body for the run he'll need for the first half of the stairs, then "blum, blum, blum, blum, BLUM!"  (He sounds like an elephant!)  At the landing before the stairs turn 180 degrees, I'll hear him pant, pant, panting.  Then, "blum, blum, blum, blum, BLUM!" and the top stair creaks under his weight, and I know he's made it.  I mumble, "Good job, Pooper" and turn the light off.  Zzzzzz.


Watching Mama Pea's reaction to having only one granddog has been pretty darn funny.  The backstory is that, despite her gradual acceptance and eventual love for the ones who have always been a part of her/our life, Mom's never been a dog person.  At all.  It's Dad and I who love the four-leggeds.  Plus, Mom really values having a clean house.  Which dogs naturally threaten.  But, precipitated by his initial unease and unhappiness and loss right after losing Maisy, Tucker has become SO SPOILED by Mama Pea!  It is HILARIOUS!  The dogs were never really allowed in the Pea house a great deal before, but now, each day that I drive to their place for lunch or at night after work, Tucker is inside.  Chillaxing on the cool floor.  He gets treats.  And lots of belly rubs.  I told him the other day, after finding him ruling the roost yet again, that it was a good thing Maisy was dead and couldn't SEE how much attention and spoiling he was getting . . . 'cause she'd bite him the butt!  ;)


I know I've touched on this before, but I really never realized how I never got to know Tucker's OWN personality.  In all of his first 6 years, he was SUCH a little imitator of his big sister.  ANYTHING Maisy did, he copied.  He was a Mini Me (Mini Maisy).  Now, though, both he and I are beginning to discover who HE is!  And it's just so interesting that that side of him was never really developed when his idol was around!  (I hope kids aren't the same - that would be a shame!)  So, I'm trying to figure out what he likes to do "for fun".  And I haven't really figured it out yet.  ;)  I've bought him new toys to play with, but he doesn't have any interest.  And I don't think that it's that he's still sad - he really seems "okay" in that department now.  I've tossed and rolled Maisy's tennis balls for him, but that only occasionally engages him.


When we were researching what kind of 2nd dog to get, the ex and I read that Cardigan Welsh Corgis have a natural tendency to be "couch potatoes" (their word).  We'd always thought that was HILARIOUS because Tucker, with Maisy, was ALWAYS on the go.  Now, though, I'm wondering if that's not true????  He seems to be PERFECTLY happy being a fairly sedentary dog!  Hmph!  Anyway, time will tell, and, as money allows, I'll keep getting new toys to try to entice him with.  It sure is interesting, though, watching the personality of a 6-year old dog (I still think of him as a puppy, I think!) only begin to develop NOW!


The mess around the house has been bothering me for an age, and I finally got the sunroom cleaned up a couple of weeks ago.  And, happily, I've been able to keep it spruced up (aside from getting the disaster of the bird cage cleaned!) although it could use a vacuuming again today.  I'm sitting here on the left side of the couch as I write this morning.

As far as potential new homes go, apparently the owner of the house & 10 acres never did get the word that I was interested . . . so all my waiting to hear back was in vain.  I got his number this week, tho, and put a call into him on Thursday.  I've been told that he checks his voicemail less frequently than *I* do, so I haven't heard anything back yet.  Then, also this past week, I heard a slightly terse call of my name as I was headed down an aisle at work one day.  A friend came rushing up to me, asking if I'd found a place to live yet?  She handed me a piece of paper with contact info for a woman who lives in New Mexico but owns a little house up here . . . and rents it out!  It's located just over halfway between Swamp River Ridge and town, just off the highway.  Aside from how close it is to the road, it's a great location!  And, it's on the lower side of the highway instead of the upper side . . . which means it's on the quieter side.  I haven't been in that house for a million years - not since I babysat the kids of the folks who owned it way back then.  It's a single-story with an attached one-car garage (although I don't know if I've ever seen the garage door open, so I don't know if it functions as same anymore).  I was also told the name of the local man who care-takes it, so I wrote him an e-mail right away.

Apparently the previous renters left the place in quite a mess, and he's not done fixing it back up yet; so, it's not renter-ready right now, but he told me to call the owner and say he'd sent me her way.  I will do that later today!!

As the days FLY by, I'm getting more and more anxious about getting something settled regarding my next home.  Ideally, I'd like to start renting well before I have to be out of here so that I can start moving in gradually and systematically . . . instead of doing it all in one big mess that an immediate move generates.  But, time will tell, and I'll keep you all posted!

Cheers!

7 comments:

  1. Sounds like you are more than keeping busy. Good job on keeping your place neat for this long. That's better than I have done, although I'm always trying to be better.
    ~~Lori

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  2. Everything Chicken Mama said about me in this post is pure fabrication. And that's all I'm gonna say.

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  3. I've got an idea for some things Tucker might like - when are you gonna be in town this next week?

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  4. If momma pea sounds like that about dogs ,than ,that's what I say about children but they all end up calling me momma more than the real thing

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  5. I am hoping for good news on that new housing lead! And the sunroom looks awesome, but I know you probably don't want to even think about that since all the emotions that brings up, but enjoy it anyway :)

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  6. The sun room looks fabulous :) Great job! Still keeping you in our prayers for a new home.

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