Sibs

I return today to the Sibs Reunion!

After lunch (after white-water rafting), we hung out at Big Sis's house and played cards in her beautiful garden. The kitties enjoyed the garden, too. She just remodeled her living room and in the process had a nasty surprise regarding male cats and territorial behavior.

(Oh, Meech, THIS is why you have been banished.)

Now, NO kitties are allowed inside.

They've got a very comfy shelter in the courtyard and still get lots of love.

That's Esau gettin' some lovin' from Mr. Handsome. Esau used to be a Hidey Kitty, always staying in the depths of the basement, before he was banished outside. Now, he's a love sponge!

Later in the afternoon, we decided to go canoeing. I called dibs on being in Mr. Handsome's canoe. Used to be, not too many years ago, I'd be all "do you see that log?" "There's a rock RIGHT THERE!" "Don't hit the turtle!" "WE'RE GONNA CRASH!!!" when Mr H and I would canoe. Geez, I hated being in the front and having no control. Maybe there was a little tee-tiny trust issue, regarding Mr. H's paddling skills. Well, those times are ancient history! I know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that my man has mad canoeing skillz. So, being pretty selfish, I called dibs on his canoe.

First, though, we had to get there. The day had started out rainy and chilly, but it was PERFECT now. Sunny and warm with a light breeze. We got to the canoe place and the young guys who helped us might have been CIA agents or Mob hitmen, they were so reticent. They used absolutely not one more word than was strictly necessary. No joking around, no banter, no info; just get the job done.

They loaded up the canoes onto their pickup and started to get in the cab. We asked, "How are we getting there?" The driver just jabbed his thumb at the truck bed and said "In the truck." Which was AWESOME!!!

I haven't ridden in the bed of a pickup in 15 years, minumum. It was a fast, jouncy, dirty, blowy, "HANG ON!" ride!

Fun! A sherriff passed us going the other direction and all the guys did was pretend to put on their seatbelts. I said something like "huh. Where I come from, it's illegal to have people in the back." They guys answered, "Yeah, here, too." They didn't slow down one little bit, and neither did the sherriff. I love the country!

The river we canoed down was so pretty, like something out of a fairy tale or the romantic tales of Camelot or Ivanhoe, all golden sunshine glittering through soft green leaves and sparkling on the water. We had an escort the whole way, too, though I didn't get any shots of her.

A Great Blue Heron. So elegant! So graceful! So prehistoric-looking!

The canoeing part was just so much fun! I really enjoyed feeling like Mr H and I were a team, working smoothly together. Sisses and Metal Man got grounded a couple times, but it was no problem. Sis just jumped out and pulled them free. All the pics are from Sis's camera, 'cause I didn't bring mine (I didn't trust myself not to drown it).

Combining two of my faves

painting

urgh, I just don't enjoy this process, this process of washing, rinsing, skimcoating, patching, priming, painting, cleaning up... ick. I just keep telling myself it will be nice to have it finished.

The dining room won't even look all that different, 'cause I'm painting it a milky-cream color. Boring. But with the bright blue chair covers, dark cherry table & chairs, yellowish oak floors and sideboard, it's tough to come up with something else! I keep gravitating toward a reddish-brown color, but since that's already in the front hall and the TV room (the nest), I don't think I should do it again. Sis said "Cruella DeVille!" in response to yet another red room and I totally see her point!

Anyway, here's a "before" and then a couple of "during" for the dining room. I'm STILL not done (currently waiting for the skim coat and patching to dry), but I'll post pics then, too.

Where the two windows are in the dining room, Mr Handsome is going to have french doors installed. He's building a deck out in the yard to connect the doors with the existing deck.

So, since I'm SO BORED with the dining room (I mean, what's the point? It's gonna look just like it did before, sheesh, how disappointing), I'm ALSO redoing the little bathroom downstairs.

Before:
This is the little rosebud wallpaper. We all remember that pattern from the 80's, don't we?

The wallpaper came away deceptively easy. In fact, that part was FUN!

(Note my "Wonder Woman" watch band. That's neither here nor there; I just like it.)

yummy beer always helps.

The craptastic part is where the skimcoat is coming away WITH the paper or just crumbling into dust if you look at it sharply. Dang stuff. Though tiny, this room is gonna be a suck project, too.

Well, enough whining and moaning. I have to go cook dinner, dust and vacuum and clean up after the cats. And I should do laundry and clean the bathroom, too. What I SHOULD do is spend less time on the computer! :-) AND I should read my little inspirational quote over there on the right.

the days race by

see more Lol Celebs

That pic has nothing to do with this post. I just think it's AWESOME!

Ok, so, I haven't finished the dining room yet. And so, since that apparently wasn't enough to do, I decided to re-do the little bathroom downstairs.

Pictures tomorrow!

Cleo news

Well, Cleo has ANOTHER UTI, but is responding well to antibiotics. Also her kidney disease is progressing, as expected. We could give her subcutaneous (subQ) fluids a couple-three times a week, which would FREAK her (and me) out, or we can let things go naturally, keeping her as hydrated and as comfy as possible for her last few months (or, hopefully, years). She's 19 years old. She's my baby girl. Even if she's old enough to vote. I'm preparing myself to say goodbye, even though I know she's got lots of time left. And, of course, she's going to live forever.

I'm working on the dining room. Its walls are MESSED UP. Someone, in the past, skim-coated the plaster. Now, it's peeling away in huge sheets, revealing crevasses and cracks and even holes. Cripes. I was hoping I could just wash and then paint the walls. Nuh-uh. Lots of spackle and then I'll probably skim-coat it myself. THEN I get to paint it. But I still haven't chosen a color. I keep getting drawn to cinnamon-ey reds!

Well, enough procrastination for now. hmm.... I think I'll get another cup of coffee....

Updated at 6:47 p.m.:

I finished scraping, washing and rinsing the walls last night and have now finished priming them. Mr Handsome says I should do that BEFORE the skim-coat. * sigh * another step. Now, for the last two hours, I've been trolling the 'net, ostensibly "while I had lunch." HA! It doesn't take two hours to eat a piece of pizza, three hot wings and a dozen Pr!ngles. ...or does it...?

Canadian funny Air

Rainy, steamy, slow day; and I like links.

Golly, today was slow at the Bookstore. Really slow. With no winning at the end, like the tortoise. It was just a slow, rainy, steamy day. EuropeBoy went home early, after winning our coin-toss to see who'd reduce the payroll burden for the day. Lucky dude. Mr Handsome spent the day working on the airing porch deck-railing. It RAINED today, hard, like being in a shower. He's soaked right through to his tightie-whities. Poor guy, he hates few things worse than being in hot and muggy environs. The deck he's finishing up will look GREAT when he's done.

So, now I'm waiting for the pizza and hot wings to arrive (I've already got the beer, in hand NOW!) and will give you some more pics of the Sibs Reunion! YAY! CHEERS! YIPPEE!!

Sis and Mr Handsome and I stopped at a sweet new brewery on our way to Hoosierville. We had refreshing adult beverages and DELISH food!

The next day, we went "white-water rafting" in South Bend. It was harder than the pictures make it look! AND it was a LOT of fun! Two (or was it three?) boats ahead of us capsized and, let me tell you, that is one NARROW channel they've got us in there. It's called a race. The pics aren't actually us, 'cause, hello, how would we take our own pics? but they kinda show what we were doing.

This picture doesn't show perspective well. That is a DROP, people, a real DROP! And worse is to come, though I've got no pics of that. We managed to stay upright. Mr and Mrs Puffythinginthesky both got DRENCHED and pushed over by the waves that tried to drown us two or three times. But, our Captain Handsome piloted us around the floaters (people AND debris) in the rampaging water and we finished the course with our dignity and pride intact!

So we went to get lunch!

(How cute is Sis?)

Kilroy was with us.
He always knows the best places to go!

Lighthouse

I have the morning off, so I SHOULD be dusting, vacuuming, doing laundry and cleaning the bathrooms, but, hey, dirt always waits. Instead, I'll talk more about the SIBS REUNION!

It was a kinda chilly day (note Sis's cardi), and the water was downright cold (this has been a very chilly July), so we just hung out on the beach for a few minutes before continuing on up the pier. There were people in the water, though. They stayed right there the whole time we were on the pier; they just stayed in the water! Were they mannequins, put out there to fool us all??? Or just insensitive to the cold? Either way, I say "brrrrr..."

We wandered down to the end of the pier. I was taking it easy, due to pain (despite the two pints of beer); Sis's squeeze, Spy Master, says I look like I'm walking like W!nnie the P00h here.

I think he's right!

There were quite a few people at the end of the pier, probably waiting for sunset, though that was at least an hour away. Next time Sis visits, I'm going to take her to the beach and we'll have a picnic and we'll watch the sunset. There's just no place like the lake. We grew up with it as our own, private, magical lake and not having it anymore is like a soul pain.

GEESH! AAAANYway, we watched the lake, we watched the boats, we watched the people, and we watched the fishermen. It was a beautiful evening.

Then it was time to go back.

Look how tall Mr Handsome is and how tiny my sis is!

This is a really cute pic of Sis.

She's so cute!

hot and sweaty

I blame Furniture Girl.

She is a Runner. 5Ks to Marathons, she's run 'em all, even when 7+months preggers with her second kid. In my world, she's hard-core (and isn't she pretty?).

Now, most of my other friends are becoming Runners, too! In the words of 'Danny Doyle', from Run Fat Boy Run, "Why?" I'd never try to talk anyone out of it, I envy their fit and toned bodies, but I just don't get it. Museum Girl told me it was for the endorphins and the fitness and, probably most important, the feeling of accomplishment. Those all make sense to me. It just HURTS so much!

So, anyhoo, with the fibromyalgia kicking my ass recently, making every movement a decision, I've decided to again try what the specialist said I should do. He said I should do challenging cardio, at least 3 x week, for 30-45 mins at a time, for at least three months. He said it would hurt like hell, but if I could push through the pain, I'd feel much, much better. I have tried, again and again, but the pain always smacked me down and put me in chains. I just couldn't push through the pain.

I'm going to try again. Today, I walked for a solid hour, a brisk walk, in the bright sunshine and summer heat. Sounds so low-key, so simple and relaxing. But I hurt. And I'll try even harder to push through this pain and keep on with my day instead of curling up, whimpering, as burning knives plunge into my legs. HA! I laugh at the pain! Also, I'm ashamed of how limited I am. I'm tired of having to say "I can't do that" to people who just want to go for a 5 mile hike. I'm embarrassed at gimping around, limping and staggering and thinking about every step I take. It's bullshit. Not the pain; the pain is very real. It's the limitations I blush over.

I WILL walk to work a few times a week, starting Thursday (tomorrow). It's only 30 minutes, I can do it! Without health insurance, this is my best way to take better care of myself. Simply walking. Thing is, I hate walking by myself. When I was a pet-sitter, it was fine, 'cause I usually had at least one dog with me. I HATE being looked at, noticed, stared at, and I figured people looked at the dogs, not me. Agoraphobia is a hobby of mine, I think. I like being inside, where no one can see me. I sound like a crazy person.

Sometimes, I pretend I'm a celebrity going incognito, or I'm a superhero. Kinda like Bey0nce pretends she's $asha Fier¢e for her really strong performances. I understand. I do. It's easier to be out there if it's not really "you." It's just like wearing a mask, or a uniform. People don't see the real you: they see what you choose for them to see.

Today, on my walk (to the library, by the way. I like to have a mission, rather than just wander aimlessly), I pretended I was Lara Croft. She is an awesome superhero-ish chick! Made me feel strong and confident and walk with strength, ignoring the stabs and burns of each step. YEAH!

Ok, so, more pics from the Sibs Reunion tomorrow!

Sis and Sunshine!

My sibs and I get together once a year, just once a year (if we're lucky and the planets all align properly, allowing us time and funds to do so). This year, Sis came ahead of time and we spent a day with Mr. Handsome at the Hobby House and environs!
No pics of the HH, but we DID enjoy food and drink and the beautiful lake, if only too briefly. NEXT year, we'll plan better, so we'll have more time together.

Here we are having lunch.

The marquee reads like a strip club.

Here's after lunch (and a couple pints of bitter).

I love my Sis!

Then we walked up the river to the beach.

Sis and Mr Handsome, strolling along as I run ahead of them to get the shot.

Sis showing how important safety is!

Sis and I strollin' along.

Mr H and The Sisters

Aw, pretty....