Posted tagged ‘Gracie’

« home page
Newer Entries »

“Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog it’s too dark to read.”

May 17, 2011

This morning I could smell the ocean. I didn’t want to come inside, but I reluctantly pulled myself away. It rained last night as it will every day this week. Today is still cloudy but a bit lighter than it’s been, and the street is beginning to dry. Gracie found the baby possum last night. I heard her making a weird sounding bark and went outside. I rescued the possum, but I don’t know how much life it had left. It moved when I grabbed it by its tail and put out it outside the yard. Gracie had only played with it, but her paws were no match for the baby possum.

I made an appointment to get my yellow fever shot for Ghana. Though the trip is still months away, every completed detail makes me more and more excited. Forty or so former volunteers will be in-country for the 50th celebration. I noticed one who served before I did. In different postings we have been referred to as the ancients and the old girls and old boys of Ghana. A current volunteer from the Upper West has offered me her expertise. She is posted in Wa where I’d visited a few times. Bolga is now in the Upper East. Long ago the whole area was just the Upper Region.

My group was the first in Peace Corps history to train completely in-country, and I sent the story to Ghana as the 50th committee was looking for historical perspectives. The story was accepted and is now posted on the Peace Corps Ghana site. I got a chuckle that it is described as part of Stories Through the Ages. Just click on an RPCV Story  1969-1971. Here is the link: http://ghana.peacecorps.gov/ThroughAges.php

Today I will be out and about doing a few errands. I think cloudy or rainy days lend themselves to errands. I have a list. Gracie, of course, will be my navigator. When I get home, I’ll just laze and read. I can’t think of a better way to spend a damp and rainy afternoon.

Categories: Musings
Tags: , , , ,

Comments: 12 Comments

“I think we are drawn to dogs because they are the uninhibited creatures we might be if we weren’t certain we knew better.”

May 16, 2011

I just got home from a doctor’s appointment in Boston but decided to write a few musings anyway despite the lateness of the day. It rained last night, again this morning and on and off during my ride. The day is dank, damp and chilly, and the weatherman says it will stay this way most of the week. When I woke up, I turned on the heat just to warm the house. It was 49° outside.

The trip was uneventful, but I got a chance to see how all the trees along the highway are far more leafy, far more into spring, than the ones here on the Cape. The new leaves are light in color and the rows of trees have beautifully varied hues of green leaves. Some have a touch of red. I watched a hawk ride the thermals against the gray sky. Traffic was light and for that I was thankful.

Today is a nap day, no question about it. I woke up earlier than my alarm and had time for coffee and both newspapers before I left at 9. I yawned most of the way home. Gracie, who came with me, slept all the way up and all the way back. She got lively when I walked her in Cambridge near my doctor’s office. She sniffed just about every flower garden by the sidewalks. Gracie is usually a great walker but today she was excited and dragged me from garden to garden. Not being a city dog, today’s outing was quite exciting for Gracie, the country bumpkin. She did her part by leaving behind smells for the local dogs to ponder.

Last night I was standing by the back door waiting for Gracie. She was somewhere in the back of the yard as she had triggered the sensor lights. I noticed what I thought was a moving shadow near a tree so I kept an eye on it and saw a small possum quickly made its way out of the yard through the only part of the fence with an opening. I was glad it was I, not Gracie, who noticed the possum.

My Red Sox swept the Yankees.

Categories: Musings
Tags: , ,

Comments: 14 Comments

“We call this a fine mess of squirrels.”

May 15, 2011

The day is lovely, sunny and warm. I sat outside for a long while talking to my neighbor as her dog, Cody, romped in the backyard with Gracie. They are the best of friends and have been since Gracie was a puppy. Cody tires first, but Gracie is relentless.

Tonight my friends are coming for dinner. It has been a long while since I cooked a real meal. Most evenings I am content with eggs or a sandwich or even cereal. We’re having Mediterranean chicken which translates into a Moroccan rub, couscous with raisins and pine nuts and baby carrots which I’ll probably steam. I needed them for color. When I choose a menu, I imagine how all the dishes will mesh, and I visualize the meal to make sure it has a bit of color. I used to cook all the time, but I’ve gotten lazy; however, with summer coming, I’ll be making dinner more often for deck dining. Saturday is always movie night, and I like to serve dinner first while we wait until it gets dark enough to see the movie. My sister and brother-in-law are coming this summer. Rod said he wants to see a movie on the deck  and wants to take an outside shower. I’ll be happy to accommodate him as Rod is the best of hosts when I visit Colorado.

Yesterday a small red spawn of Satan was in one of the feeders. I ran at him waving my arms and screaming like a crazy woman, and he jumped out of the feeder onto a tree limb then up the tree where he sat and scolded me. Later he was again in the feeder, but this time I waited until I got closer to scare him. He fell out of the feeder to the ground then scampered up a tree where he sat reprimanding me for the longest time. Gracie was circling the tree. I was not at all sympathetic. From my desk, I can see that feeder, and crazy woman is sitting and watching and waiting.

Categories: Musings
Tags: , , , ,

Comments: 8 Comments

“Nothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride.”

May 12, 2011

No sun again yesterday had me thinking I must be a character in the Ray Bradbury story All Summer in a Day. Today, though, is much lighter despite the clouds, and I swear it looks as if sunlight is struggling to break through. There are lots of errands to do today as I lolled and read yesterday. I haven’t told Gracie yet, but the dump is on the list.

My deck is a mess from all the wind and rain. It had been cleaned and readied for occupancy and now has to be again. The feeders are empty. I watched a cardinal hunting for pickings in the big feeder. After I get home, I’ll mosey out and do a bit of clean-up and give the birds their seed.

Today I’m mailing my passport to the Ghanaian embassy to get my visa. It will be accompanied by two applications, a money order, a return registered envelope and four very ugly passport pictures.

When I was a kid, my bicycle, after spending the winter in the cellar, needed to be spruced for spring. The chain had to be greased, the handle bars polished and the rest of the bike dusted. It was a heavy bike; they all were back then. It was difficult to get my bike out of the cellar because the stairs from the cellar were to the left of the door, and the bike just didn’t bend that way. Usually the best way was to hold the bike by the back fender and lift the front end into the air to turn it toward the stairs. I then pushed it up the stairs to the backyard.

I remember the joy of those first spring bike rides. The air was filled with the smells of flowers and of dirt freshly turned. My street was a hill, and that first ride was like flying. I never pedaled. The hill just took me and my bike. My small town was my world and once spring came, no where was beyond my reach.

Categories: Musings
Tags: , ,

Comments: 18 Comments

“Do not let Sunday be taken from you If your soul has no Sunday, it becomes an orphan.”

April 10, 2011

Yesterday I filled all the feeders and even fed the spawns of Satan. I had a bag of peanuts in the shell and lined peanuts one after another on the deck rail. The squirrel arrived about a minute after I’d left, sniffed the first peanut then took his time eating them. He even sat down at each peanut to give it his full attention. It was interesting watching him size up the peanut to decide the best way to open it. I also took a trash bag and cleared the backyard of papers and plastic flower pots which the wind had blown from underneath the deck. I found a couple of empty cat food cans stolen by Gracie and sneaked into the yard where she cleaned them out. Gracie trash picks, but I never catch her. She is adept at being quiet and sneaky.

It is actually 51° but I think it feels chillier, the house especially. This time of year the air outside is sometimes warmer than the inside. I should push Fern over and make her share the sun with me. Cody just arrived from down the street to play with Gracie. He comes to my front door and barks so I’ll know he’s there though Gracie usually spots him first.

Tiny buds have appeared on most of the trees. My wild rose bush has some on every branch. The crocus are finally up in the front of the house, and I found some daffodils in the backyard when I was cleaning. I don’t know how they got there as I didn’t plant them. Maybe there are flower elves just as there are shoemaker ones.

When I was a kid, Sunday was a quiet day, a family day. We went to church and sometimes we’d visit my grandmother. My Sundays now also have a pattern. I had a cup of coffee and read one newspaper then went out for breakfast. I called my sister at 11 for our usual Sunday conversation where we catch up with each other up and chat about books and movies. When I finish here, I’ll read my other two papers. I’ll probably take a short nap on the couch in the later afternoon. Tonight my friends and I will watch The Amazing Race and have dinner together.

I love my Sundays!

Categories: Musings
Tags: , , , ,

Comments: 9 Comments

“Letters are among the most significant memorial a person can leave behind them.”

April 9, 2011

Today is perfectly lovely though still a bit chilly at 48°. It’s the lack of any breeze which makes the day feel almost warm. The cats have staked their claim in the sun streaming through the front door. Gracie is outside playing with her pal Cody. He leaves his own house, runs here and barks at the door to come in and play with Gracie in the backyard. When they’re done, I let him in and open the front door. He runs home and leaves an exhausted Gracie behind him.

The Red Sox won their first game yesterday. It was against the Yankees and was a see-saw game until the seventh. I’m thinking being home was all they needed. Yaz threw out the first pitch and Johnny Pesky said, ” Play Ball!” I love tradition.

I used to own lovely stationery. In the corner of every sheet was an embossed K. Having that box made me feel special. Though I haven’t any of those sheets left, I still have some boxes of note cards left over from the days of handwriting. I’d send a thank note for gifts and special evenings. I haven’t done that in a long while; instead, I write an e-mail or make a phone call, but they just aren’t the same. Taking the time to write a note elevates the gift and the gift giver. I think it’s time for me to go back to that lovely tradition of  giving thanks in a special way.

When I was in Ghana, I sent blue aerogramms. My writing was tiny, and I filled every open space. My mother saved several of those, and I love reading them. They aren’t filled with exciting travels or stories of marvels, but they give a chronicle of my every day activities, my students and my trips to the market or my rare evenings out at the Hotel d’Bull for a movie. Back then, I thought the news quite boring, but I knew my family would be thrilled to read about Ghana and what I was doing. I never thought I’d be reading them forty years later.

Writing letters has gone out of style and been replaced by e-mails and blogs. I imagine, though, I too would have had a blog of my adventures in Ghana, but I do love having my letters and re-reading them. They are a narration, a log, not dependent on an internet connection. They are far more substantial.

Categories: Musings
Tags: , , ,

Comments: 14 Comments

“You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm.”

March 31, 2011

The sky is cloudy and hiding the rain which will start sometime tonight and go into tomorrow. We’re getting all rain, but up north, they’ll get snow. It’s a nor’easter according to the weatherman. That is always the worst storm whether snow or rain.

The bird feeders are empty again. I swear there must be a sign which announces the menu and all the birds flock to dine. The goldfinches are getting brighter. I noticed a few the other day with real yellow on their breasts. In the front garden, some of my spring bulbs have flowered. I saw small pink ones when I went to get the paper. Color is so welcome this time of year when most of my world is still gray and brown.

I’m finding the long string of winter days is morphing into boredom no matter what I do. My pile of books is much shorter, but I get tired of sitting and reading and get up and stand at the door like Gracie does. We both hope for a little excitement. The other day I drove to Wellfleet and brought my camera, but nothing perked my interest. The bakery with the best cheese bread around which had my mouth watering at the mere thought of it was closed. I turned around and came home.

Today I’m going to the Audubon Society’s lecture about butterflies. I’ll write down the flowers which attract them to the garden and put a bed out back so I can see the butterflies in all their colors, their splendor and glory. The deck in summer is already filled with birds flying in and out of the feeders. Adding butterflies will make my backyard such a wonderful place to just sit and enjoy the world.

My mother was always the best at April Fool’s Day jokes. She always caught my youngest sister even though she was on alert. Our kid jokes were never very original, but we still laughed uproariously at our victims. One joke had to do with empty buckets seemingly filled with water which we’d throw on our victims. They always yelled anyway and called us names. They hated getting caught in the prank. We pretended to see dog poop on the backs of coats and jackets: poop jokes are most decidedly a kid thing. I don’t remember the last prank I pulled. I think I may have to spend a bit of time planning for tomorrow. The joke has to be subtle and believable. My mother will be my inspiration.

Categories: Musings
Tags: , , , ,

Comments: 19 Comments

“Sometimes the most urgent thing you can possibly do is take a complete rest”

March 25, 2011

Today is beautifully sunny but still chilly. We’ll have the low 40’s for the next four or five days and the low 30’s and even the high 20’s at night. My birds have found the filled feeders, and I watched the chickadees for a while from my window here in the den.

I have come to the conclusion that I am not Wonder Woman. I drove my car on Tuesday from Falmouth, filled the bird feeders yesterday and last night went to our usual trivia night. I wouldn’t have minded the aching back when I left the Squire after the game but we were awful. We consoled each other by the fact we had won three weeks in a row, and this horrendous loss was our kind way of giving a new team the chance to shine. At least dinner was delicious. I started with hummus and then had a fish dinner.

Last night I woke up several times trying to find a way to be comfortable given my back pain. I had to keep pushing Fern off my hip. I hate it when she sleeps there but most times I’m too asleep to notice but not last night. Gracie ended up right beside me with her head on my shoulder. She barely moved every time I woke up. I slept late but it was an uneasy sleep.

My dance card is empty until Sunday with breakfast at the diner and dinner at my friends’ house where we’ll watch The Amazing Race together. Until then, I intend to remove my Wonder Woman bracelets, my lasso of truth and my tiara. They just don’t seem to match my sweatshirt and flannel pants though I do like those red boots.

Lois Lane was one of my heroes when I was kid. She sniffed out stories and was willing to risk everything for her by-line; of course, she knew Superman was never far away. I remember those suits and hats she always wore. Lois had the wardrobe of a businesswoman of the 50’s, and there were very few of those. Her hats were always ugly or at least I thought so. In my guest room I have a small collection of women’s hats from the 50’s and three of them could have been worn by Lois. Two of them have feathers standing straight up. My favorite is a black one with a red feather.

Well, it’s time to get off this chair and get comfy. I do love pampering myself.

Categories: Musings
Tags: , , ,

Comments: 8 Comments

From the dog’s point of view, his master is an elongated and abnormally cunning dog.

March 6, 2011

Today is warm despite the breeze and sunny with blue skies. I haven’t been able to say that in a long while. Gracie and her dog pal, Cody, are playing in the backyard. Cody lives down the street, and when he is let him out, he runs right here to play. When they’re done and banging on the dog door, I’ll open my front door, and Cody will run right home. Gracie will be panting with her tongue hanging.

I have a list for today and tomorrow to get ready for Tuesday when I’ll be taking the 7:10 bus to Boston. I have to report at 9:30 for surgery at 11:30. Coffee will then be on hiatus until I get home. My pet sitter will move in on Tuesday.

When I was a kid, our dog Duke used to stay at my grandparents’ house if we went away. They were not animal people, especially not Duke people. If they let him out, he’d head back to our house, several blocks away. He just knew where to go. My grandfather would drive up and fetch Duke, and after doing that a few times, he’d end up tying Duke outside. One time Duke was uptown and happened to find my grandmother. Those were the days when dogs roamed all over the place, no leash laws anywhere. Duke followed her from store to store though she tried several times to shoo him away. I guess she didn’t know how stubborn Boxers can be. Duke followed her into Woolworth’s where he lifted his leg on the comic books. The manager demanded payment for the ruined comics. My grandmother told him the truth, “He is not my dog.”

Duke is the reason I always have Boxers. He was a great dog. He always made us feel safe, and he’d growl at anyone walking around outside the house. Once he nearly went through the screen screen door at someone on the sidewalk by my house. Another time he did jump out of the car window while we were stopped at a red light. My father pulled over, jammed on the brakes and took to the chase. Luckily someone saw what has happening and grabbed the fleeing Duke.

Gracie is a brindle just as Duke was and, like Duke, has a tendency to take flight if given the chance. Luckily, Gracie heads down to my friends’ house, and they capture her. She is far less stubborn than Duke was, and other than taking off, she lets me be the alpha dog in the house.

Categories: Musings
Tags: , , ,

Comments: 9 Comments

Newer Entries »