Category Archives: #Aging/Positive//Better

Pretty Miss Kitty

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Photo by Kayla Dahl Maclean on Pexels.com

Let me tell you about Miss Kitty. She’s a cat . . . Once a kitten who came to my daughter’s back door looking for food and of course was feed and named.

She was tiny and no one guessed pregnant.  At a young age, probably only eight months, she gave birth to seven kittens, lovingly nursed them all and hid them under a kitchen appliance for their own protection. My daughter found homes for all her kittens and assured me, although Miss Kitty was coming to Florida, it wouldn’t be for long.

Well, that hasn’t happened. Now Miss Kitty and I are at home alone, frequently. She greets me in the morning while I’m sitting on the toilet. If my insulin pump’s alarm signals a low reaction and I don’t hear it, she jumps on my bed to wake me.

But she zooms around the house looking for playmates. When my husband was alive the house was active with care givers and what not. The television was on all day. I turn the TV on when I’m going to sit and watch a program.

I like the quiet. It has its own sound. A comforting silence.

I hope to be traveling soon and sure friends will come and care for her. Don’t get me wrong. I love Miss Kitty, but she’s young and should be having the time of her life.

She could go live with her two sons in Rhode Island.  What do you think?

                                                                                    . . . just saying

 

If you haven’t read my first novel Morningside Drive, it’s available everywhere on line.

 

 

The Little Yellow Train

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Have you heard about the Little Yellow Train? I hadn’t, until I turned on the television and found Rich Steve’s travel show about France, the Pryenees and The Little Train. It wasn’t deliberate. You know how streaming works . . . You keep clicking hoping you remember the streaming service you watched your favorite program on. And some how wind up somewhere else.

In this case it was a good thing. The Legine de Cerdagne or Petit Jaune train gets its name from its red and yellow colors derived from the Catalan Flag. 

  • The line is 63 kilometres (39 mi) long and climbs to 1,593 metres (5,226 ft) at Bolquère-Eyne, the highest railway station in France.
  • The line serves 22 stations, fourteen of which are “request stops” (i.e., the train only stops when specifically requested by passengers).
  • There are 19 tunnels, the longest of which is the Tunnel du Pla de Llaurar with a length of 380 metres (1,250 ft), located at kilo metre point 59.639.[6] 
  • Built in 1903 today it is maintained as a tourist attraction by the agency called Plan Rail.

The PBS television program included panoramic views of the Pyrenees and small French villages.

The gentleman who purchased an abandoned train stations, restored it as a Bed & Breakfast, and now gets dropped at his door, was interviewed. He spoke French only and required a translator.   

It’s unlikely I’ll get to France and ride the Legine de Cerdagne anytime soon, but I enjoyed the view and the closed caption from my living room. 

                                                                                                         . . . just saying, Claudia

Morningside Drive is still a popular read and available on Amazon

Twelve Days Until Christmas

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There are eighteen days left in the year and twelve days to Christmas. I’m looking forward to the holiday and don’t know why. I miss the Christmas Santa left me a bike and a bride doll. I miss being awake all night helping Santa. But that was then and this is now. It will be a quiet Christmas.

Christmas Eve I’ll make Cioppino Stew/Soup, although I learned you can order it on Amazon. Christmas morning I’ll bake my Christmas bread. The smell will hold pleasant memories.

But of course I’ll miss the snow.

. . . .just saying, another sunny day in Florida

A Lucky Day

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One morning when my daughter, Janine, was kindergarten age she woke me up saying, “Mom this is your lucky day.”

I had gotten her older brother off to school and gone back to bed. I wanted to pull her into bed with me and cuddle. But, she was dressed in her favorite Health-tex outfit and her purse was across her shoulder.

She explained, “Mom I am taking you to lunch at Shelby’s.

So at 10:30A.M. on a school day we sat on metal stools that spun and ordered lunch.

I had a hot dog and Janine a grilled cheese sandwich.

 When we finished Janine asked, “Mom would you like desert?”

“Oh no, thank you. I much too full.”

She would and called the waitress over.

This sour looking woman held a pencil and order pad in hand, never smiling.

“I’d like a scoop of vanilla ice cream with a cherry on top,” she said with her head held high.

“That’s 5 cents extra,” said the hardened waitress.

Janine counted her money and I debated giving her the extra nickel she lacked. She had the ice cream without the cherry.

Yesterday was another lucky day.

Twenty well-wishers came to discuss and purchase books at the Halifax Plantation Golf Club luncheon. My daughter was unable to attend but nevertheless I’ve been doing a lot of smiling thinking about the two events.

Thank you to those who attended. I value your kindness and support. And yes, I’m working on the second book in this series called, The Middle Seat Passenger.

Morningside Drive is a cozy/mystery novel and can be purchase on all online book stores including Amazon.

. . .just saying, Claudia

P.S. Johanna, thanks for reminding me of past posts.

Composting Yuck

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In a previous post I talked about the Composting Guru who provided a five minute video on composting. I watched the video and followed the steps.

We didn’t have an old beat-up bin so I bought one. Just as well because it is going to be kept outside and in Florida would be considered unsightly. Fortunately I found a lovely purple one. Unfortunately the strong sun will fade it to a dingy violet in no time.

I put Bobbie C to work drilling holes in both top and bottom.

He took the job seriously. It was harder than we thought.

The next steps were easier. S

Steps to composting

1. Add dried leaves
2. Add soil and water
3. Dump in smelly yucky compose and mixed slightly. Cover and set in the sun.

It was quite gross. The filter inside the lid of the kitchen bin prevented my from smelling the decomposing fruit and vegetable scrapes.

Since we are three miles from the beach our soil isn’t really soil, it is sand. I’m hoping this will help things grow. But it is probably just another one of my “great” ideas to fight global warming.

. . . just saying, Claudia

Composting

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What’s new at my house? Well there haven’t been any health events, thank God.

I’m a full time care giver now. Those of you who have been there, done that, know what it entails. There is little time for other things, especially writing. But occasionally there is something new.

Doesn’t this Crofton Countertop Compose Bin (only $14.99 at Aldi’s) add a decorative element to my kitchen?  It’s useful too.  

“Compost is a mixture of ingredients used as plant fertilizer and to improve soil’s physical, chemical, and biological properties. It is commonly prepared by decomposing plant and food waste, recycling organic materials, and manure. The resulting mixture is rich in plant nutrients and beneficial organisms, such as bacteria, protozoa, nematodes, and fungi.” (Wikipedia)

This past week I added fruit and vegetable peels expecting the decomposing to occur. . . magically? Am I naïve, old or just plain dumb?

Today I realized the bin is a collection item and the magic takes place outdoors when soil, leaves and water are added.

Fortunately Composting Guru who provided a five minute video on what to do. You’ll need to view or skip through two ads to see how easy it is.

Claudia. . . just saying

Mary’s Smile

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What Is Vogue

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A Michael Knors Design

Vogue is synonymous with fashion, trend, craze, fad, style and the latest. . . exclusivity.

Designer fashion has always been for the rich, however, now even the rich question. . . what they can afford.

Yesterday the March issue of Vogue magazine came in the mail. It is two hundred and seventy-five pages of beautiful photos and many articles.

My daughter used sky miles to subscribe, but since she’s not billed, doesn’t know how to stop them from coming. I don’t usually read the articles because the print is too small, but the title, What Is It With the Price of Clothes?, intrigued me.

Apparently only the richest of the richest are buying. But designers aren’t complaining, because prices are climbing. Channel’s classic quilted flap bag now sells for ten thousand dollars, double what it was five years ago. Why would Channel increase the cost and why do the rich pay the significant jump?

Well, if only the richest of the richest can afford to buy their status increases and so does designers’ profits. . .a win win

However, none of that is my concern. My worry is what to do with the magazines filled with pretty pictures.

Before Covid I would bring magazines to the hospital for their reading cart. Remember reading carts? Sometimes I’d leave them in a doctor’s waiting room. I can’t do that any more. So out of desperation I stacked them.

What do you think?

I’m still conflicted about throwing them out.These are some of the photo from the current magazine.

Ruff, tough and baggie are stylish. I don’t go for any of these looks, although the shoes are classy.

The pictures below aren’t from a photo shoot, but from a professional photographer on the street looking to prove that messy is a trend. I thought a large open over filled hand bag a pick-pickets dream. Wrong! Today, it’s “a marker of modern womanhood”. Go figure.

To make matters worse, I’m binge watching Project Runway and haven’t seen anything I’d buy it I could afford to.

I was never cool, but. . . still. . . is it really fashionable to look frumpy, and messy, your hair in disarray?

Please let me know if there is a way to cancel a subscription you aren’t paying for.

. . . just saying

Welcome To My World

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     Photo by Lynn Milburn

Mundane Sunday

Mundane Sunday

My Tandem insulin pump, wakes me up at 6 A.M., like an alarm clock would, to let me know I am going low. So, like it or not, I am up for the day.

 It’s Sunday morning, January 7th.

Like it or not, I drink a glass of juice, then fix a cup of coffee and a piece of toast.

Now. . . it’s Wordle time.

I started doing the word game last January. In the beginning I struggled. Now I’m fairly good. This morning I figured out the five letter word of the day in less than five minutes. My current winning streak is thirty-seven days long and I feel proud.

At my last eye doctor’s visit, hoping  to engage him in normal conversation, I asked if he played the game. I expected to chat about fun or finding time to play. But, his response was a dissertation on vowel versus consonant approaches. His take on a mundane pastime was genius, the only one he had, and why he’s a retina surgeon.

According to him, I use a vowel approach. I always use the word years, because it has three vowels. If none are in the word, I attempt to use the remaining vowels, i o or u.

Well, it is time to shower and blow dry my hair. Then I will bake a crumb cake for my grandson.

Yesterday, January 6th is a date I will always remember because. . . it is also my grandson’s birthday.

The day won’t be totally mundane. Dominic, his wife Marcela, and our daughter Janine, will join us for dinner out, then we’ll come home.

I will light a candle on the crumb cake and we will sing Happy Birthday.

P.S. It’s not snowing in Florida, but I wish it were.

. . . just saying

Metaphor Dice January 2nd 2024

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Today I rolled the Metaphor Dice. The words; wonder, memory and unspoken spoke to me. If you would like to use the words in a poem or short story in a post please do. After you post, copy its link in my comment section.

Photo by Philippe Donn on Pexels.com

Unspoken

Memory is an unspoken wonder

Disappearing quickly over time

Delete the past to make space for the present . . . or vice verse.

We cling to the passage of time.

Fond memories become fonder, an unspoken wonder of days gone bye.

       . . . Claudia just saying