The Day After Christmas

Santa in the disguise of my daughter and grandson gave me an iPad for Christmas.
You will never get rid of me now!!
LOL
And then my car battery died.
The grandson to the rescue!!
He is scary smart and knows how to do everything.
So I have a new battery in my car and dinner will be delivered because today wore me out.
Merry Christmas
Happy New Year 🎈🎊🎆 

I have a dead battery

The New Year can only get better.

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!!!
I hope 2019 is a Fabulous Year for us. All !

Finding A Place

I have made some decisions based on recent events in my life which will ultimately /probably mean some Big Changes..
I will blog when /if there is anything of interest to share but I don't want to lose everyone by boring then to death.

I am going to look at the New Year as a Time to make all kinds of changes based on what I want..no one else.
Well ....the cats have a vote but they are generally happy with warmth,regular mealtimes,good Windows to sit in and like my own wishes, to be somewhere we can feel safe.

Weather has a tiny bit to do with it... There is no joy waking up to weather warnings and learning Hurricane Preparedness .

I will also remember what my husband used to say .... You never really know people.
And you should never blindly trust someone.

I have been guilty of making some mistakes but the repercussions have been the sort that I cannot live with.

So for now I am here and doing my research , later we will talk about it more and get ideas.
This is my New Years Wish for everyone .......Find your Place - The One That Makes You Happy.

Forgivness

Doesn't it seem that of all times of the year ,that people should or would be more forgiving to others at this time ?
Talking to a friend this morning and hearing about how much she has always done for her family and friends and then after a series of unexpected and tragic events, she has a form of PTSD.

So of course holidays and the stress and expectations really affect her.
I have admired how well she has managed especially with additional problems coming from others.
She mentioned how others go on and basically have their usual lives but she doesn't and while she tries not to be gloomy, she sort of expects others to be a bit more aware.

She saw a doctor about her memory and he assured her that mostly she will be fine. And worry or stress typically can get in the way with remembering things.

All of this means a lot to me because I too have this going on. I thought after a while my memory would be better and it is but if there is stress , the memory, she is gone .
:)

I have experienced some of what my friend has dealt with and being alone all the time makes things worse but I know one thing for sure......
I am never going to be impatient or irritable with anyone for having a hard time remembering.

Funny , often the things that are remembered are those people who are so impatient .

Merry Christmas

I still have no computer and the laptop is barely working so I’m IPhoning
my Holiday Greetings to you via telephone ⭐️
The cats and I have been alone and mostly peaceful if we don’t count the unexpected panic attack from nowhere, the dead car battery that was saved by my hero Zachary .
I got to see my brother and he sent a photo of where he lives and now I want to live there too.
I remembered to send off Christmas cards but for some reason I sort of forgot to buy presents lol
I have a good reason ... I have stayed home every day and I don’t know how to get to the mall and I really don’t want to drive there by myself.
So online shopping and gift certificates are the way I go.
I had imagined shopping in a nice big mall with someone but that never happened.
Amazon and Sephora online never let me down.
Years ago my husband gave me a fabulous ring.
I misplaced it or lost it a few days ago.
Every day I search .
Maybe I will find it on Christmas.
I am still harboring the fugitive kitty.
So that’s what is going on here.
You can see how little you missed when a few days went by with no posts .
Happy Holidays!!!!

Bye Bye For Now

My desktop computer died. Someone was supposed to come fix it ... they didn´t ... this computer-laptop you might notice is having its own issues and I have no idea why .. now and then it seems to want to speak another language .. y mi Espanol es no bueno .. es muy mal .. mostly.

Anyway ....  my postings will probably be few and far between until I get things straightened out.

So from a very chilly raw, cloudy damp day in Florida ... Take care, see you later !!

Caution:Wet Cat

Merlin is horrified because he dashed out the door to the lanai then realized he was standing in water.

I dried him off and told him how brave he is.

It will take him a while to recover.

Merlin

You know how people, when they stumble or trip , will look back as if to see what they tripped over even when it was nothing but a slight clumsiness?

My old cat Merlin just walked out the sliding glass doors to the lanai and he stumbled 

Then he looked back to see what tripped him.

I adore that cat.

Rain Rain

It’s pouring rain and I am surrounded by napping cats.
I went to the store and bought a lot of soup something sweet.
And a lot of cat related things...litter etc
The rain has continued since last night and shows no signs of stopping
I have a lot of good books and the television so I will be fine.
I am alone all the time so being stuck in with a rainy day is nothing.
I am glad I don’t have to walk the cats.
So I am fine and I will post whenever there is anything to talk about.
Until then , Take care and talk to you later

Merlin Needs A Drink

It is cold in Florida. I sleep like a baby, in that big bed that can definitely fit a small dog as well as the cats.
 I imagine the grumbling of Merlin if someone bothers him while he is sleeping, Minnete who just wants to be close to Mama and Honey who takes up a small human  sized bit of the bed ..
She walked across my stomach this morning. I was afraid my spleen would rupture.
Minette wanted to sleep up by the top of my head ..
Merlin just wants to sleep .. leave him alone, stop kissing him, let the old man sleep.
No one did anything today. A shower and getting dressed sucked up the tiny bit of energy there was ..
I bought an igloo for a cat... it is lined with fleece...shearling like and it fits a small cat perfectly. I got one for a small dog and that is just right for Honey.
Merlin is big, until you see him curl himself up into a cat ball in a small dog bed.
He is staring at me now. If I look at him, he will make a little cat mutter .. then look away. . he wants to go out onto the lanai, in the pitch dark and drink some water out of his dish out there .. never mind there is a water bowl in the kitchen, the bathroom and bathrooms upstairs.
I have to go now- he is staring at me .. I have to let him out to get a drink and to talk to him so the raccoons won't try to break in while Merlin is drinking.

A Dead Apple

My desktop computer is dead.
I think it was a bug or virus. I have little hope for it to come back to life but I have some hope that I can get to my multitude of photos ..
Sometime I would look at the photos and think, This is my Life in Pictures ..
Children who grew into teens and then into lovely adults .. grand babies who make everyone smile.. the remarkable grandson who is about 23 years older than the the younger one, who starts kindergarden this year .. while the other one is in college .. and yet I am still so young !
lol
☺
Nothing to say but all is well .. cats are fine .. it is cold here .. plans and ideas continue to float around and hopefully a good computer repair is about to happen ....
Have a good week ~

photos are ok

https://notesfromabroadblog.tumblr.com/

http://notes-fromabroad.blogspot.com/

Weekend Note

I wrote a long post but it was all about me and how boring it is where I live lol
My computer just died. I am using the laptop which is the same age as the desk top and has a habit of speaking Spanish when I least expect it and other than the letters, you never know what will happen if you type a number ..
Today, so far, it is behaving.
And so far, this is all about me. sorry.

Buenos dias .. I hope everyone has a great day, that you slept late and have all kinds of fun planned.
Tell me about it .. I somehow think it will be so much more fun that I will have Ñ= ) ...that is a smiley face, see what I mean --–-__ no question marks left in the laptop, I must have used them all up.

Happy Weekend !

C

Just saying Hello

My big computer is dead, the laptop is almost finished and I will be rduced to blogging on the iPhone.
I don't know what to do but today I will check out Apple stores , techs etc and see if something will get me back to my new normal.

At least I have the phone .. but I refuse to sit and peck out a blog on an iphone ..

Cats ... I said to mself last night , Is this what my life has come to ?
I have my own which is really all I need, especially with the inherited sweethear called Honey. Merlin and Minette and Honey get along fine .. very fine.
Honey is the size of a small dog and has a meow of a kitten and she makes me laugh ..Merlin naps and purrs and his time with me is growing shorter and that thought makes me weep. Minette is my little spitfire .. slinky little blue cat with yellow eyes and a lovely purr which her mama really appreciates .. except at 5 am when Minette can't sleep so No One can.

It is a gloonmy day so far, foggy and chilly. I don't mind. I have plenty to do in this too big for me townhouse .. I was considering shopping for some things then doing some baking nd soup making.

We will see. Once I am out of bed and dressed, will I feel like that ? or would I rather loll on the sofa with cats and a good mystery on the Kindle?

Whatever you are doing today (tell me ) I hope it is a good day.
A good day here is ... the computer is working ( desktop is not  this old laptop is )..so far.

Tell me about your weather and your day ...  I want to know what people out in the world are doing ... thank you !!

See Ya Later

I am not going to be able to post for a little while, I hope it is only a little while.
My desktop computer is either dying or has a virus and I can´t use it at all. It won´t even open today.
So that is the story .. something else for me to cope with.
I am getting kind of tired of coping.
Good thing I have the cats .. it is a little less awful when coping if one has a cat or two.
OK or three.
It is cold and damp and grey .... yes, in Florida. I wish I had a fireplace ..
But I have books and tv and cats .. everywhere you look.
I admit to allowing a little wanderer to sleep on the lanai in a warm box ..she went home before her humans were even awake. They do not deserve her.
It is going to be freezing temps tonight.
Take care, see you in bogland ......

Ms Fixit

It is a good thing no one can see me or hear me.
I am sneering with disgust at the computer and I have been calling it all kinds of names. For hours.
I want to throw it out but I am not that unhinged.
And while I am fed up disgusted and tired of computer BS ... I am sad.
My husband would quietly sit down, fix it quickly, give me a kiss and go back to whatever it was he was doing .. reading or watching the news or planning some more travel.
It is times like this that it takes everything I have not to just give up, lie down and weep .. then weep some more.
I miss him so much anyway but being alone ALL the time then needing advice or help with the stupid computer just makes me want to give up.
The cats aren't even in here, where they always gather when Mommy is on the machine... usually with pretty music playing ..

All I wanted to do was clean junk out of the computer. It is yahoos fault. They changed things, causing me to change things etc.

I like gmail but I have always used Yahoo when I read news, weather and whatever.
This morning there was a hint of possible trouble .. a good computer with its security plus all on .. started behaving as if there was something going on ..
I did a virus scan.
Somethings turned up.
I deleted things and emptied trash * I know I am going to be looking for those things later*..

Now I am not sure of the machine and not sure of me.

Plus .. people use their computers for things that need security and I have no way of knowing if I am still safe and secure ... you never know, someone will want all those cat photos and recipes !

So that has been my day.
That and having an old cat that is suddenly acting old and making me nervous.
And 2 young cats that hang around him and make sure he has company ... Minette is especially bonded to him .. Honey too .. sweet babies.
I have decreed that Merlin lives to be a record breaking Oldest Cat in the World.
So I have to go watch over him some more now and be sure he   remembers that goal.
Besides, my heart can break only so many times before it is irreparable ..

Pussycat Pussycat Where Have You Been ......

                                                   I can't let my cats see this.

Monday Monday

So, today I wasted time I will never get back. I knew better, I should have listened to my inner self saying Don't start ! You will regret it !!
And I went ahead and changed my passwords and made a big mess of my computer.

I hate passwords.
I have some that are easy to remember, they mean things.
People warn me not to use well known to the rest of the world, names  ... or anyone or anything.

But but ... I need short easy things that I will remember every day even in the early morning half asleep.
I am terrified of "screwing things up" ...  I look for kindness in the people I bank with and those that answer phones for things...

So I won't do anything more today, I will give it time but I think I will have to change the new names to something old or like something old or just give up.
I am something old. I am feeling it every day.

But I bought Lottery tickets today anyway ... I never expect to win but I love the expression
"You never know " ... It's true .. you never know.

Wishing everyone good luck in whatever you do , good weather because it is so gloomy here ! and a good week ... look at those days ahead of you as unknown treats and possibilities, lying in wait .

Happy Monday ~     https://youtu.be/h81Ojd3d2rY?t=4

Kitten Time

And you wonder why I have cats ......

The View

On the street where we used to live.
In New Jersey.
We lived in this wonderful house with all these trees and privacy and could be in Downtown Manhattan in about 45 minutes.
The house was in need when we saw it but there was so much about it that was fabulous. A room upstairs that was all windows .. this was the view .. although this was the view from the living room too.
 It was a wonderful home for 7 years. And it was a wonderful view.

Napping

Cats like to nap.
Some cats seem to like napping more than others ... or maybe that is because some nap in out of the way quiet places ... and some lie down on the floor, next to the bed and snooze.

With cooler weather and my inability to sleep late in the mornings .. a real bummer .. I am going to take Honeys example and have a snooze in the afternoon.

The worst that can  happen is that I will be up wide awake and ready to talk at 1:00 am.

Do you nap ? Where is your favorite nap spot ? My husband would say, I am going to lie down and close my eyes for half an hour.
And it never failed, he fell asleep immediately and woke up half an hour later.
He had magic powers.

I never left the house today.
I did deal with a little cat that wants to live with us . Followed by raccoons who want to watch tv with us .. and it isn't even time for my fave TV shows !

Have a good night, hope your weather is good .. 

Everything

You can't have Everything .... Where would you put it ?

crush cul de sac

Meet My Old Man

He is quiet. He is very neat and tidy so he is a pleasure to live with. He isn't that picky about food . He is picky about how he looks and that he is clean and tidy. I like that . . one of the many things I love about him. . . My Old Man

The South

I grew up in North Carolina. I was born in Arizona, lived in California and Hawaii then ended up in North Carolina. 

I hated it . People said I "talk funny" .. children stared and shunned me because I was "the new girl".  There were times when they mocked me when I would say anything. 

I have tons of sympathy for the children of people who actually are from another country and do have accents and speak other languages. 

Sad part is, so much of the South is still like that. Bigotry and Ignorance are easily found..  

But when you are wounded either physically or mentally and you need a warm quiet "soft" place to heal, the South might be just what you need. 

Due to my mom and her always saying "Bless your heart" , regardless of the situation, it always felt right when she said it ... I say it. 

And like my mom, I mean it. 

I say it to the cats, to the little racoon that was tapping on the lanai door last night, waiting for a scrap of food .. no I did not feed it ... it was hard but I didn't .

The one thing I really like about living down here is the greenery. Of course NY has abundant greenery and I am not comparing ... but the trees here, and moss and rolling lawns of green green grass and the lake with the green around it, dotted with geese having a rest .. Green is the backdrop for everything.

I am not sure how long I will live here , somehow it doesn't have a permanent feel to it but at the same time, this is my home right now and it feels good .. maybe I will improve my Southern accent.

And Spanish ... I got to surprise a gardner the other day by answering him in Spanish .. that was fun.

I guess when you look at me, you don't expect me to speak Castellano .

Where were you born ? Where do you live ? Do you like to wander or are you a homebody ?

This will be part of my next Notes ..

The Front Door - A Day in the Life of Two Expats

In case no one noticed, there has a been some Homesickness for Buenos Aires running around my house. I got the worst case, the cats just slept it off.
We are about to get some storms, I went to the store and bought things that don't need to be cooked  and lots of drinks and water. Nestle water with orange is my new favorite ..
When we first moved into our home in BA .. across the street was an ice cream place. My husband was sure we had moved to Heaven. Every evening after dinner, he would go pick up just enough for the 2 of us for dessert. No matter what flavor, it was always delicious.
Then he closed and moved and what do you think took over the space .. we were so sad to see the Ice Cream man leave ..... yes .. a bakery.

Across the street. Breakfast rolls still warm .. sweet cakes for dessert .. good bread ( bread in BA was pretty blah, bland, tasteless when we first moved there but we managed to find the bakeries that made good bread ... the Best being the French Bakery..L'Epi Boulangerie ..  I still miss them.

Buenos Aires - The Weekends

Every weekend in Buenos Aires, they had ferias in all the neighborhoods. Ours was just a couple of blocks from our home. There were museums and a very wide boulevard and miles of parks.

And on the weekends the vendors would set up their little tables and stalls and have all kinds of goodies for sale. I got beautiful leather handbags that I can still use, that were gifts ..my husband got new belts and a wallet that is still here and soft as can be .

When you got tired of walking and looking and shopping, you could get something to eat.

There was everything from meat on skewers to ice shavings in cups to pastries .. I saved myself by just looking and enjoying a Brunch in a Sidewalk Cafe after the shopping spree.

When Tate was alive , he knew everyone, they would kiss him ( on the mouth!!) and give him treats.

So you could say that our dog was a big fan of the weekend feria.

Now this is what a bank should look like. To the right is where our home was.

Next ....Finding a Home

Blue Skies, Nothing But Blue Skies

There are days when Florida can't boast about the blue skies and warm breezes .. but I say, Thank Goodness for that !
Our favorite line from a film we saw years ago was  when an English woman looks out her window in South Africa and declares .... Another F**ing Beautiful Day.
It was the last thing we expected to hear and the whole audience laughed out loud.
But today, I know how she felt ... day after day of warm/hot sunshine gets as monotonous as day after day in the rain.
We had the rain part when living in Oregon.
The weather in Argentina was a good mix of hot summer days, comfortable nights and then winter was grey and damp and chilly. You never have to shovel damp and chilly.
That was what we got when we returned to the US and moved to Upstate New York.
Our first winter there, my first winter there, I believe there were 6 snowstorms. The locals even remarked on it .. I was a zombie anyway so to me it was just more misery.
That and seeing the bills for heat each month ...
Funny, today is grey and gloomy and it feels normal.
Friday-what are you doing this weekend ?
I have no plans at all. I have to remind myself of what day it is ... every day is just like the other ..
But that is all coming to an end, sooner or later.
TGIF

                                    Yet there are cloudy skies like this that aren't so bad either ..

The Day After The Night Before

Halloween when I was growing up was a Event ! Costumes and Candy were the topics of conversation for weeks. Anticipation .. going out in a group or just with your baby brother and dad .. it was all good clean fun.

Now we have to watch every step the children take, who opens the door to the house they go to, will the people at the house be nice or friendly or mean ?
Do Not Let the children eat anything until we get home and check it for poison or razor blades ...

At this point, a party at home with friends and decorations is the Best idea for Halloween.

Last night, in my gated community, with street lights and house lights and the odd alligator lurking in the lake ... not one child came to the door.
I waited and expected something, a tiny hint that this at least would be "normal" .. like Things Used To Be.
But no .. not one little munchkin yelling Trick or Treat and holding out a bag to be filled with goodies.
I found it sad ... adding to the sadness I already feel with the isolation and crime statistics and hearing good news from NY but ..... I am not in NY .

That might have to change.

So what did you do for Halloween ? Did you get a lot of Trick or Treaters ? Did you dress up and scare the children when you opened the door ? lol

My dad would not scare the children but he would always put on something silly and answer the door and act surprised that people ( little people) were there ... chatting with them and getting the favorites out for those who didn't like nuts and those who loved marshmallow chocolates and not even one wanted an apple.

He enjoyed Halloween. So did I.
But sadly , not anymore.

It really is just for children ... with imaginations and the wonder and excitement of getting to go out in the dark, dressed crazy for a couple of hours and ask people for candy. Who wouldn't like it ?

Another year .. another Trick or Treat ...

Happy Halloween

In The Cemetery

My husband used to tease me about being "ghoulish" ... I like cemeteries.
Not the ordinary places where there are  stones that are all mostly just alike and the whole area is clean and tidy and sad ...
I like gothic ancient cemeteries that have been there forever and just reading the headstones is an Experience.
Some tell stories, some break your heart, some might make you smile and they all mean something.
Maybe not to you or I but that is someone that meant something ..
And we all want to mean something to someone, don't we ?
This is from our last visit to Paris.

Smile

That is some cute face ! Impossible not to smile when you see it.
I have that when I look at Merlin. His grumpy old man cat face always makes me smile. No matter how happy he is, how loudly he purrs ( and he can purr loudly !) he has that grumpy old man face . He still makes me smile.

Honey makes me smile because she is comical. Her markings, her size !! and her voice. She is a 2 ton cat with the meow of a kitten.

And Minette my little girl .. she is petite, her voice is small, she is just my little girl.

I wonder how they would like a baby llama ....


TGIF ya'll

A Day in Buenos Aires

Walk down the steps, into the parks and let the dog off his leash. Sit on a bench and watch the dog play with all of his BA puppy pals and sip the coffee and plan the day.
Many days were just that .. take the dog to the park, sit on a bench and talk, people watch, pup watch and sometimes chat with a park regular or neighbor ... or a tourist who approaches us timidly, thinking we might look friendly .. Bonanza ! we speak and understand English !
Our lives slowed down while living there .. there was no hurry you have an appointment or quick before the weather gets bad or what is there to do today ?
We floated along, coffee at home, take the dog for a walk, stop at a cafe and have a coffee and they would always bring out a bowl of water for the dog.
Make our plan for the day, walk the dog back home and leave him to nap.
Shop, for groceries, for shoes, for this and for that .. spend an afternoon in a museum .. that was once a famous woman's house, with her things still in it, wonderful music playing throughout, a fantastic cafe downstairs, the walled in garden where you could enjoy the cafe ..
Mosey on back home, pick up something at the market for dinner ....
There were so many days like that ... I wish there had been more .. I wish there could be more ..
But I am so thankful that I had those days..

Notes From A Cat

Hello. This is Merlin. How do you like my name ? That place where they put me until Mama rescued me named me Cubby. I refused to even look at them. When Mama came to get me, I would not look at her either. When we got home, she sat in a chair by the window and she held me and talked to me with this really quiet voice. She said she would name me Merlin because I am magical. Whatever that means. It is a nice name though.
Now that she is my Mama, I know she does not have a quiet voice for everyone but she always does for me.

When she brought me home, there was already a little cat living with Mama. Her name is Minette.
She was a tiny skinny little grey kitten. I really liked her. She liked me too, she would always want to nap next to me. I let her.
Now we take our naps next to each other every day.

When we moved, out of the nice big house, to this big place with a nice big room that is outdoors, we still have lots of places to nap.
And I got another sister. sigh.
Her name is Honey.
She is huge.
I make sure she does not sit on me or sleep too close to me.
But she is a kid . And she is sweet .  Besides, Mama still likes me best. She told me so.

We all go to sleep on Mama's bed at night. She said she likes it when we are all together and she doesn't feel alone. We feel the same way.

Mama bought a chicken today. She told Minette that we would all have it for dinner with her.
Nobody has a Mama like our Mama. I am a lucky cat.
Merlin                                                               

Merlin

Honey

Minette

"Easy Spirit " ?

A while back, I bought a pair of "clogs" made by Easy Spirit.
They are cool, as in not hot to wear, black fabric and some woven stuff. They are great for running out to the mailbox etc and anyone who does not wear shoes in the house knowns how comfy/handy it is to slip into a "clog" kind of shoe when going outside ..

They are pretty new, barely worn .... I put them on yesterday to .. walk to the mailbox which is about a  block from my door .. easy nice walk.
As I walked towards the door the one shoe felt weird.
I looked at it and the entire sole on the left shoe was coming off.
The soles are not even dirty yet .. the stupid shoes are new .. so I put superglue on the sole and left it overnight and have not looked at them yet.
I did send a cranky complaint to Easy Spirit because even if my glue job worked well, I resent spending money on shoes that have to be glued to keep from falling apart.
What would have happened if it fell apart while I was walking somewhere ?? out of the house .. ?

I really resent trusting these brands that are around and seem popular/reliable and then have the product completely fall apart before even being used.

So my advice ... for Free !! .... Watch out for Easy Spirit products ... especially the shoes.

I complained to the company - I will let you know what happens. Aside from me being cranky about spending money and trusting products to be worth the bother .. my bedroom slippers have lasted longer than some of my shoes. And I wear them in the house all the time.

Hmmmm ... maybe I will start a new trend. Wear your bedroom slippers out .. grocery shopping, to the kids ball games , yeah .... 

Testing etc

So I had the brilliant idea to clean out the old mail and spruce up my iPhone and the computer .. god please stop me from ever doing that again. ..

I have spent/wasted the past at least 2-3 hours, getting things back to normal.
I feel like if one thing more goes wrong .. my head will blow up.
I think my brain already did.

The weather is fabulous. This must be why people move to Florida and the resulting boredom.
At least you aren't out shoveling snow or paying high heating bills ..  I see clouds !! look at that !
The sky has been a pure blue untouched by clouds all day .. it is warm but almost chilly in the shade.
It is perfect catnap weather and I have 3 examples I could show you. . But I won't.
I might have to change the name of the blog
Notes From ACat  .... yeah, I like that.

Maybe just once a week ? one of the cats will post ..

I have nothing in the house to eat , I might have to eat a sandwich .. I go to the store all the time but never get enough dinner things ... but if anyone needs a paper towel or some bread and soda , I have it !

So this was just meant to test the computer and my skills at putting my messes back together and I think it has worked and all is normal again.... if there is such a thing as "normal again."

Ta ta for now ... 

There Must Be Someone Out There

Surely there is someone out there somewhere that could adopt this dog and keep it alive.
If I were allowed to have dogs and didn't have a herd of cats, I would take her in a minute.

Look at the sign ... 1, 456 in a cage in a shelter,

Someone must be out there that could even adopt her then love her and care for her in a normal home while they look for another permanent home ... just  get her out of the shelter !!

I rent and I have 3 cats . I am asking my friends and people here online ... you do it too... copy the photos, ask people you know, ask friends who would make this poor pups life worth living.
Look at that face.

Cat Day

It's a grey cool quiet day. No wind, the forest just stands there .. no cat visitors .. silent and still.
Merlin knows just what to do on a day like this.
I am going to the supermarket  before I succumb to his sleepy cat vibes and sleep the  afternoon away with my sweet boy.
Minette is on the lanai, napping but watching for intruders. She is my watchcat.
Honey ? upstairs on Mama's bed .. She and Minette were gossiping out on the lanai but she  got sleepy and went inside.

It's a very nice quiet Cat day ..

October Cats etc

I have the cats, I can buy pumpkins nearby but I need those stairs !! During these holidays, these times when you decorate your home and do festive cheerful things, I miss Home the most .. during an ordinary week here, I go to the store and take walks. I spend most of my time out on the lanai with the cats or reading in the living room.
My living room has a wall of glass, so it is like being outdoors but with air conditioning.
The cats are content .. give them a pillow, a sofa, a coffee table to sleep under and they are content.
Merlin with his old bones gets the dog bed.
Minette likes to scare me by opening the door to the antique cabinet that is now the stereo cabinet and she sleeps on top of the equipment inside. It isn't on so it isn't warm, I can't figure that one out.
Honey likes to be out on the lanai on a chair with a pillow or wherever I am. She is a sweet little ( well not so little) shadow ...

Today is very gloomy and dreary but not too bad because it is still warm and there is a green forest outside my windows so I have no real weather/view complaint.
Mostly I am just feeling a bit isolated and sad these days.
My favorite time of year is Autumn and my favorite place would be New York, upstate with the fabulous colors of Autumn and friends and new babies to meet and kiss.

So enjoy the time of year wherever you are and tell me about the weather where you are .. the idea that I hear about Hurricanes while looking at Halloween photos boggles my mind.

                                                      My own evil kitchen cat
                                          ** There is not an evil bone in her body**

This Is For Linda

Get A Cat

Those Were The Days

For some reason , I forget the reason , I don't live here, this is not my view. I need to speak to whoever is in charge !!
Can you imagine, waking up and opening the curtains and there it is ? And at night !! those twinkling lights !
We rented an apt in Paris that was 2 blocks from the Eiffel Tower .. in the evening after dinner we would walk over and just look at it , soak it in .. for times like now ... when it all seems like it was a dream.
A very happy and content dream.
If you want to rent that apt, the company was  Paris Perfect 
It was a one bedroom, perfectly furnished, with walls of windows, good furniture , a great big comfy bed with a view of ...yes .. the lights from the Eiffel Tower ..
This was the last time I saw Paris. Our last trip to Europe ..We didn't realize it then but I am so glad we did that trip ... that way .. not another posh hotel with room service but a very charming apartment with windows that wrapped around and had views of Everything .. with a cafe on the corner of course.
This is why there are times when people say Those Were The Days ~

A Quickie

Just a quickie to say that all is fairly well and Merlin might need to see a vet about his ears but I am doing my best to avoid that. I have no faith in the vets here and don't feel like wasting so much money on losers.
So I am waiting to see a day or so then I will take him to an animal hospital instead of a place that only has one vet ..

I have gotten depressed so I have nothing nice to say about anyone and nothing interesting to talk about .. especially since I go nowhere and do nothing ..  Nowhere Man ... I have to see what the words are to that song .. it might apply to me these days :)

The weather has been gorgeous .. warm and humid now but it has been California weather to me.
Storms will probably rumble through soon but eventually, it will be beautiful again.
One thing you can pretty much depend on .. Jacksonville having pretty nice weather.

There is a possibility that I am going to take a blogging break.
I can't continue to bore you and depress you and I feel awful when I do bother to post and not one single person acknowledges  it with a comment or anything so it might be time for a break.

In fact, it is time for a break.

If anything comes along that I need to share I will but for now-
take care,  enjoy your Autumn and I'll see you .. sooner or later ..
Candice

The Merlin Admiration Society

It's Monday.
I slept fairly well.
No one decided to groom me in the middle of the night, no one jumped off the bed and back on at 5 am .... but I still woke earlier than I had to.
I used to be a champ at "sleeping in" ... My parents were amazed at how much I could sleep.
My husband wished he could sleep in like I did.

Now .. there is no one to notice if I sleep in or not, and I wake up early every morning.

Merlin is not his old self.
I always worry .. will this be it ? is this him finally winding down ?
What will I do ?
Minette and Honey have each other but they both adore Merlin.
My house is just a big Merlin Admiration Society.
first of all, he is a Himalayan .. he is gorgeous .. how can you not love a cat with blue eyes and a tail like a feather boa ?
which by the way, he uses that tail like a boa , when he naps, the tail is sort of wrapped around him.

I knew when I got him, he was already old. But I also knew that cats can live into their 20s and he has been treated very well and has been very healthy .. but all those years before he came to live with me .. that is one of the unknowns.

So Minette and Honey hang out on the lanai, generally near Merlin.
If he comes into the house, sooner or later, they will straggle in .. going to lie down near Merlin.
I admit to often choosing the seat or sofa closest to where Merlin is napping ..

Last night he was sleeping on the floor .. by my bed.
I got up and put him in bed with me .. he snores.
I don't care.

Merlin

a good thing

Goddard’s Law,  which was sent into effect in 2016, makes the crime of abuse towards a companion animal a felony. 

It's Been Nice

I have cats as everyone knows and probably groans when I mention them.
I started out like a normal person .. perhaps in not so normal circumstances.
My husband and I had always had cats and a couple of amazing dogs.
While in Argentina, the most amazing dog died .. he was old but had cancer and died.. the way we would all probably like to go .. at home with your loved ones holding you and telling you how much they love you.
When we got back to the US .. we talked about getting a cat and another dog.
But as fate has it ... all the talking and planning and dreaming .. the worst and most unexpected unplanned event happened.
And then I was alone.

One day, thinking that I could not bear the emptiness in that house that I was still adjusting to living in .. I went to Animalkind in Hudson NY to look for a cat.
When I walked in, there were no cats. I was saddened, I had expected to have to choose from an array of needy kitties.
Then the owner pointed past me and I turned around and this tiny blue kitten was stalking me.
She chose me.
So I named her Minette and we did and have loved and enjoyed each other .. she is smart and beautiful and a perfect broken heart mender.

Then one day I was thinking, would she like a companion.
So I looked at Animalkind but there were no cats that day.
Then I wandered around online and there he was ... my grumpy faced beautiful Merlin.
His name was Cubby at the shelter ... the most unattractive name for a gorgeous Himalayan cat.
He was immediately renamed Merlin because he is so magical .. he , with Minette, helped heal my broken heart and kept me from going mad with grief.
Who can lie in bed all day crying when you have hungry cats walking all over you and meowing in your ear ??
And so I began to return to "normal" life but different.

Time passed, I sold the house, moved to be away from a needy old house and snow and isolation and here we are, Florida. Where they have hurricanes and the neighbors stay inside  ... doing whatever it is they do .. except for meeting their new neighbor.
I do have lovely people on either side who say hello. Nothing else but Hello is nice.
But then my Mom died .. after I arrived .. and I inherited Honey.

The cats and I are ok .. but the weather which people love is not ok with me.
I like NY weather.
I like Summer , I love Autumn and Winter is winter, it gets cold, sometimes it snows and then one day it gets warm  again.
But best of all, they don't get Hurricanes. Every year.
And I have friends there and family.  I have a family member who is getting older, just like we all are but I think she has a head start on most of us. And I miss her. She , aside from my children, is the closest relative I have .. and her daughter. I need to see them and talk to them, not just email them.

Today is a gorgeous day.
Anyone visiting Florida, where I am , would want to live here.
I would too ... if there were no hurricane warnings, no flooding, no fear of trees falling on my home, no bugs and illnesses that I never met up North ..

It has been nice .. but it is time to move on ..

It Is Time

Storms elsewhere give us some beautiful sunsets, it is chilly and sunny and not one cloud in the sky this morning.
The cats and I woke up freezing because the air conditioning was on but it is chilly out .. it felt kind of good ... waking up under a pile of blankets with cats huddled against me for warmth .. reminding
me of living in NY .. I am homesick.
I have absolutely no plans for the day. Which probably means that the cats and I will spend our time on the lanai with a book. although the cats don't want to read, they like to keep me company.
I also thought a corner flower market would be nice for getting more potted plants for the lanai.
I want to put a bit pot on the front step by the door ..something bright and cheerful.
But not too welcoming, I want no one to come to my door :)
I got a bad taste the other night of what kind of people live near me ... the closest ones are the best, I am so thankful. But just a few doors away are some Dr Lectors and a possible Mad Dog Killer too ..
not to mention the Neanderthals ...
Plans are slowly in the works for new sights and sounds and neighbors ..  it is time.

The War Path

My grandmother used to say that when someone in the family was in a temper, that they were on the warpath. I never thought about it other than it meant to stay out of that person's way ! :)

Today, everyone had better stay out of my way.

I was looking at the cats out on the lanai, sunning themselves, warming themselves, Merlin catching his morning nap .. Minette on the chair in the shade, snoozing ... Honey in the living room, snoozing.

As I looked more closely at Merlin, I thought his ears looked bad .. scratched up ... then I looked at Minette to compare ... her's look a little ...scabby? raw ? like maybe some M*F*r let their cat covered in MANGE out to wander around the condos and spread his disease ...

So now I have zinc oxide on one cats ears to be sure it is nothing  ... the vet here, that I used once .. was totally inept, stupid and I often wonder if he actually has a vet license.
So he will never be the one I would ask, Is this mange ?

But to be sure, the cats have been checked, one has white stuff all over her ears and I will go to the Drug Store to get more oils and things that heal and kill the mites .. although it seems that olive oil is sufficient.
IF ONLY I was back home where the vets had a clue.
I have never lived anywhere that finding a vet was not easy. until now.
Make that ... finding a Good vet.

I am so p*ssed.

Have a good day .. You know how I will be spending mine and also add to that list of things I need to do today .. start making plans to Get The Hell Outta Here !!

Sunrise Sunset

It was a day of sunshine and mostly blue skies, warm but not too .. if one were a swimming pool person, it would be just the way you like it. But it was a perfect day for reading and being as lazy as possible on the lanai .. accompanied by a trio of soft warm purring creatures who were just content to be there with me...

I avoided listening to the news, barely watched anything on television and enjoyed the break from worry and strife and madness in all parts of the world, including Washington DC.
Last night was another one of those where at the end of a pleasant day, one action created a reaction that ended up causing me anxiety, fear and a wave of sadness and an overwhelming feeling of being so very alone.
Today I thought about it.. then tried to toss it out .. never to be thought of again. well, until now.
But it will be gone .. you step in the wrong spot, you get something nasty on your shoe , you clean your shoe and go on walking without giving it any more thought.
That stuff on my shoe was the man that lives a few houses away from me.
And he and his big mouth are relegated to the status of just some smelly stuff on my shoe.
And I learned the lesson of staying home and avoiding the neighbors. Funny, living like this, you would think everyone would know each other and it would be more ... friendly.
But just the opposite. Why did people bother to live in homes that are attached to other homes ??
I started looking at NY Real Estate lol

So tell me how your Monday was ... what are your plans for the week ?
My plan for tomorrow .. I want to buy plants/flowers and have a lanai full of geraniums and ivy and a bit pot of geraniums on the front step too.

What does your front step look like ? Yes, that is my sunset here ..

My Weekend

There was this sweet cat hanging around the lanai all the time. She wanted food and company .. my cats were curious and I felt terrible for her. Outside at least all day, in the heat and bugs and threat of racoons and whatever else Florida has to offer in the woods ... we had an alligator or two in our lake ..
who knows how a cat would survive in the woods .

So I let her in.
Keeping my cats in the house , no exposure to germs or fleas since the little cat had no collar and I had no idea where she was from.
But I couldn't leave her outside alone and meowing.
When I opened the door you could hear her purring for miles :)

She is a sweet big girl .. grey with scars that match on both thighs .. something tells me that she has met the raccoons before.

My first thought was .. this isn't a dog. You don't open the door for the cat to run out and pee in the yard then come back in. She was especially at risk at night .. it is a State Forest behind me. No hunting, all kinds of creatures live there with no worries but where to get dinner ...

I opened my lanai door and wanted to see if I could pet her ..... Pet her ?? She dashed into the lanai, lay down and started purring like a maniac.
I think they were purrs of relief.

It was dark out .. not a good time to find her family.*Mistake # 1*
I decided to go to a couple of houses and ask if someone was missing a cat.
Result:
You would have thought I asked for their first born and all their money.
I have never in my life been greeted/met/been treated so rudely, so threateningly, so scarily by "neighbors " or actually, anyone else .. anywhere !
And in my fragile state of just getting over or still suffering the last shreds of PTSD ... I stood at the mans door and just looked at him. The fact that he was so angry and yelling in my face just did not compute.

I turned around and walked home.
When I got in the house, I cried. For my husband not being here with me. For the idea that I am alone with insane people living nearby and they might be dangerous .. If a simple question from a neighbor about a cat set this guy off, imagine if someone complained to him about something .... they would be toast !

So here I am. In a 3 bedroom 3 bath condo with laundry room and enclosed lanai.
That I am now afraid to walk out of ..
I go into the garage from my hall .. never stepping outside.
*This would be so great if it was in NY in the winter*

I don't know anyone here, vaguely the people on either side of me but not really.
While I am in the most luxurious home with my cats, I just want to be back in New York, where I understand the crazy people and they have never threatened me or screamed in my face.
Not even that guy in Manhattan who sleeps in doorways .. he called me Prettylady.

So that is my Monday Tale of Woe.
My weekend stunk lol

This Made My Day

Going Home

I have been asked lately, "Why did we leave?" ... Buenos Aires.

In a nutshell ... our son had been living in Japan, he met and married a beautiful girl .. they returned to the US ... visited us .. found a good job and settled in in NYC.
As things go .. we were still content .. well, I was . He had lived in Japan for years with a visit now and then, now that he was married, I felt that it would be sort of the same.

Then ... this and that happened that made things very scary and worrisome and costly and we were in South America and they were just the two of them in NY.
My husband worried ..I worried .. the thrill had sort of gone out of our Great Adventure.

So we started the process of Going Home.
I didn't really want to go ..looking back, my instincts were good .. we should have stayed in Argentina.

Then Tate died. Every time we walked out the door, it felt weird, where is the dog ?
He had been with us through so much, he was a member of the family suddenly gone .. it was awful.
How awful it all would be was not even thought of ..

My daughter in law became ill. Many months of fear and worry ... then finally those words you want to hear .. All Clear.
My husband was mentally packing his bags.

We called our realtor .. he put the place on the market .. it sold quickly.
We left Buenos Aires .. not with a lot of joy . My husband was excited .
But had I only known, while there was Good waiting "back home" ... there was grief and sadness too.
So we left Buenos Aires.

more later...

Those Happy Days

Of all the homes we had over the years, this really was my favorite. We had to go all the way to Argentina on a holiday to begin the hunt for that home .
I never even thought about Argentina .. or even South America. I was usually focused on Europe, London and Paris. We talked about Italy, it would have been the "next adventure" ..
Then one day out of the blue, while living in Portland, my ever ready to explore the world husband, brought home books and magazines about Argentina and Buenos Aires.
And so it began.
Once I saw the prices of really nice hotels, shopping and sightseeing, I was all for it .. I'll start packing !!
We were so lucky to have a neighbor who volunteered to Pup sit ..
It was a 10 day visit.
From the fateful meeting in the airport waiting for our flight, with the sister of the man who would become our friend and our Realtor ... from the charm and perfect location of the hotel .. The Art Suites Hotel.
One suite in front, one in back .. views , kind and helpful staff and right smack dab in the middle of a popular and extremely nice neighborhood .. how could we not fall in love with the place and want to live there ??
More fate .. we were walking down the street with our realtor and a little downhearted, we couldn't find anything .. we were looking for a Home .. with the character of an old Argentine home, not a slick modern all white clone of the modern hotel we were staying in ..
Then as luck would have it .. we were standing on the street corner, saying good by to the realtor who was going to go look for more properties for us .. when I looked up. And over our heads was the For Sale/Vende sign.
And within about 2 months, we owned a home in Buenos Aires.
The architecture was old style and that was one of the reasons we loved it. When the painters came and carpenters and floor people and plumbers finally left .. we had our grand Half Floor apartment .. The "maids room" became our huge walk in closet/dressing room.
The maids toilet became the laundry room.
Everything I ever dreamt of if I lived in a foreign land , I got to have ...
Those were such happy days......

The Catty Life

Once again I am happily surrounded by purring cats. Young ones, very large ones, sweet ones and one so very very dear .
Everyone seems to be feeling fine, moving slowly or as in Minettes case, darting around and hopping up on things ... ahhhh to be young and limber.

Honey is the youngest and the largest and the slowest and pretty darn sweet.

She enjoys hanging out with me .. she is a couple of feet away, by my desk, sleeping ..morning nap time.
Downstairs, out on the lanai, you will find the others, napping , sunshine, warmth and full bellies.

So I will spend today practising Not Worrying and figuring out plans for our future.
There are some very good ideas ... so far that is all they are ... very good ideas :)

Wishing everyone a Happy Friday and A Great Weekend .. I have no plans so who knows what mine will be like.

TGIF Ya'll !!

Merlin & This 'n that

This morning Merlin went to the hospital.
Merlin is eating like a good boy but then he goes straight to the litter box.
Like he drank the water in Mexico or something !!

So he is too old and frail as it is, he doesn't need this problem .. Mama zipped over to the very close, thank goodness, Vet who made us wait a shorter amount of time than usual because it wasn't the jerk that we usually get. The jerk is arrogant and rude and not even animals like him.

So this lady took him somewhere and weighed him and checked him and gave him back to me to comfort him and she gave him a shot.
He has meds to take for about a week.

Merlin is so very old and fragile, this sort of thing makes me nervous and worried and feel very weepy. That old grumpy faced cat is so very dear to me.

So I am not sure if I will be posting .. for the week anyway- I have nothing to talk about these days.
My life - I live in a condo on the edge of a forest in Florida.
I am isolated, alone and rely on the cats and my daughter for someone to talk to.

Today I am also worrying about my daughter who is unwell and staying home waiting to hear word from her doctor.

None of this is interesting to my readers. I love you all for even bothering to look in .. stop by and see if I have anything interesting to say ... I apologize, I don't.

So maybe for a little while, I will blog when there is something .. an event .. a real reason to blog ..In the meantime, I will not promise to blog  ..at least not every day.

Thank you for being there. Please do check and see if things return to some kind of normal.
I enjoy blogging when I have something to talk about but here and now ? meh ~ there is nothing but the weather and the cats.
The cats mean the world to me so I will be hanging out with them and working on Our Future.

Love you, Thank you, See you ~

Storm's Comin '

       Really loud  thunder and dark clouds ...  Talk to you tomorrow ~

So Here We Are ~

Computers ! Bah humbug !!!

Mine has been acting up. I  have all kinds of protection and blockers of spam etc but  something still happened and made things wonky.
I think I am fine now .. I hope so. Being alone so much , it is nice to be able to go online and read the news or blogs or Travel sites and watch a movie if I want ..

Actually I rarely watch shows on the computer  , but I can watch Father Brown or videos of Adele singing and I do love my online magazines like Vogue.com UK and shopping at Anthropologie.com or J.Crew.com
There are more .. I like to look ~

So with all my wandering all over the internet I figured it was a good time to empty the junk drawer and delete the oldest mail etc.

I have no idea what happened, this is something I have done many times for years.
So my guess is that there was some sort of virus in there ... I use Symantec for full computer protection .. they should have stopped this one .. maybe they did and I screwed things up but I have been correcting and deleting and hoping that the computer is going to stay ok.

And all those things I am  connected to online  .. you know, bank accounts etc .... I shudder to think.

So here we are ... A Hot Sunny Tuesday in Florida.
Cats are napping .. They have been up for 2 whole hours since getting up .. they need to rest ..

I am thinking of shopping or cleaning or laundry or shopping ... hmmmm...

I prefer to shop online these days.
I will go to the supermarket probably, I always run out of things. I am not a good grocery list maker.

I just want my computer to continue to work well.
And a big slice of watermelon. Yes, I definitely need to go  to the store.

Plans are being formed and perfected and there may be changes ahead but I won't spoil anything by talking about what I wish for  ... I will wait until I am actually Doing something !

Have a good and happy and safe week.
We all got through Monday .. the rest should be a piece of cake ~

Stay Safe

There hasn't been much to talk / blog about ..
I live in Florida.
I live alone with 3 cats in a beautiful townhouse on the edge of a forest .. No one walks here and no one visits each other ... the neighbors are quiet/silent and super nice when they do speak to me  ..
I did get one note, left at my door ... from No Name on the note .. telling me that I should stop leaving my garbage cans outside and that my dog bothers her.

ok

There is one in every neighborhood ... usually more than one but so far, she is the first nutter that I have come across.

So now I make a point of leaving the garbage cans out  the night before  and I told the cats to learn to bark.

I have this fear. Not quite sure where it came from and or why but at the same time, I imagine most sane people have this fear ... Hurricanes.
I am terrified at the thought of a hurricane.

So you can imagine how calm and serene I have been feeling the past couple of days and I see no reason to change that yet.
I talk to myself, trying to convince myself that it is not close but the thought terrifies me.
Then of course, it is on the news 24/7 plus special programs talking about the devastating hurricanes in the past .... like someone needs fresh images in their head as they prepare to run for their lives.

We are not (so far) in any danger of this storm ..I had a friend  a long time ago who bought or built a beach house in NC .. she lived in the mountains but loved the beach .. so she left  her husband in the mountains and went to live at the beach. With a pack of dogs. I wonder how much she likes living there now that this sort of thing is a yearly occurrence ..

The worst thing that happened to me living in Upstate NY was so much snow at a bad time in my life but it was shoveled and cleared and the house remained standing .
I am a weather wimp.

I bought Lotto and Powerball tickets.
If I win something, I will buy something .... big.
Beeeeg.

So all of you , stay inside and away from oceans and hurricanes and let me know how you are and where you are if you wish ...
Stay Safe ... Stay Dry !!!!

Caturday

We are having stormy weather with sunshine .. go figure ... cats and I are enjoying being stuck inside.