54

  Today I am 54 years old. Fifty four.  Five four.  54.  Wow. Seems like yesterday I was a lot younger.   Time flies, my friends.

      I will continue to cherish every day and hopefully every year I am allotted on this earth and I will take a lesson from my aging Dane, Ben.  He’s a cardiac and arthritis patient at this point – has his good days and bad.  Dogs have the great gift of not knowing their mortality. They only know the good days and the bad days.  They celebrate the good by just being, doing, enjoying the moment, whether it’s a good meal, a warm fire,   a romp in the tall grass or  splash in the beach waves with the warm sun on their back.  Bad day?  Rest.   No worries for them about the future or mistakes of the past or even relationship or finance woes.  They just live in the day, and make the best of it without a thought for the rest of it.   Wouldn’t it be grand to have the freedom to do just that.  We CAN do some of that if we allow ourselves – and so I will. 
    So I missed being a leprechaun by mere hours. My mom made my favorite birthday dinner last night – the traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal… It was divine.  And while I may not look it,  I have some Irish in me. On this day it’s all in.  🍀
 L-R – Mom, Rex, Daughter K,  Son’s GF and my other girlie, M, and  Me

    I hope you had a good day yesterday and wore a little green, celebrated  with some merry in your step and perhaps your mug too.   May we all take a lesson from dogs and find more ways to enjoy life, less ways to fret over it.

 My favorite Irish blessing – 

Till soon, friends  xo
– Karen

Snow Day

   

     Under normal circumstances they don’t like each other- they argue over who’s the boss, they don’t always perceive the same things as dangerous or even agree on who’s a friend and who’s a foe. They don’t share well with each other, but somehow the storms change things. Butt to Butt- they weather those  storms and find common ground, they find comfort in each other. We could learn a few things from dogs…..


 
     

   Something I took for granted for all these years-  Democracy. I never realized how truly fragile it is, and at any point in history, what we depend on can come crumbling down.  Maybe a dividing, lying, egotistical blowhard like Tr*mp had to happen in order to flush out all the corruption, the hypocricies, the bigotry, racism and  blind allegiances that clearly still course through the veins of our republic.  Maybe all the shortsightedness on both sides of the aisle and the less than stellar motives of some of the extremists, both left and right,  needed to be exposed in order to eventually heal what is clearly very broken. 

   I’m encouraged by the good things that are coming of this collosal mess, people are voting, for one thing.  Women are coming forth and getting elected at record rate – Republicans and Democrats are questioning some of the failings of their own parties and striving for something better.  In many places We the People are being heard.    Amen… and Amen again. 

    

    Last night we had our first real snow fall – 



       This morning it’s all pretty wet, with rain in the forecast. 




 The green thing in the upper right hand corner is the umbrella I was using to shield me from the wind and drizzle as I fed horses and chickens. That’s the thing about these adorable farm animals.  Doesn’t matter the weather, they need their feed.  My morning commute ….. 



   
   Opie, not particularly fond of selfies, waits impatiently for grain. 
     

Fiona says Good Morning!   (actually, she’s clucking ” It’s cold – where’s my F-ing oatmeal” . Yep, she swears – I’m a bad influence, I know it. )


   

      I’ve started the holiday decorating inside – not too christmas-y yet because we’re hosting Thanksgiving dinner here.  Nothing says disrespect for the Thankful holiday like Christmas up in your face before you’ve even carved the bird. 



 Miss Sally’s favorite perch ….. 




 Usually I have a coffee cake or brownies or cookies in the glass cake stand on the kitchen island. We’re all trying to watch our calorie intake ( we’re watching it, alright… as it goes in our mouths….)  and for some reason I believe we’ll eat less crap if it comes in small wrapped packages… ha ha ha… ha. 




   
  Anyway… a few chuckles for you on this dreary grey New England day…. 




I hope all is well in your neck o’the woods – 
Till soon…. 





Troubled waters, restless sky

     Throughout my younger years I often reflected on how lucky I was to grow up in a time of relative peace. Too young to know the horrors of Vietnam personally, born decades after the World Wars… I felt relieved that our world had learned it’s lessons in the atrocities of war.  This is not to imply that there hasn’t been turmoil around the globe, that there haven’t been major issues brewing under the thin veneer of “peace time” since.  I think it’s crystal clear, particularly now… just how thin that skin was.. and is… 
Passed this in my travels last week… I want to hug the person who displayed it.  Amen.  One of the many issues before us. 
      I have always hoped and believed we would never come back to an all out war between super powers, surely the powers that be would learn from past mistakes… would not allow, ever again, the mass destruction, the horrors of war, because… NO ONE WINS.  EVERYONE LOSES… isn’t this clear to all by now?  Hasn’t history taught us enough of those lessons?  Lately, it seems power and greed and corruption and ego are winning out over common sense.  
     Such a beautiful world we live in.  The simplest truth is… every living being could exist here in comfort, in relative peace, in harmony.. together….having what they need.   It’s absolutely attainable, if not for greed and ego.  How very sad that we can ruin it for ourselves.  This is where the idea of a divine creator is lost on me. What a cruel joke, to create a race that will probably eventually destroy itself based on those two traits.  I want to believe good will always slay evil.  I don’t think I have to touch on what we’re all seeing in the world news … lately, that scenario doesn’t seem likely. 
     
     Yesterday I paddled my trusty little red Kayak, Ruby,  out into a choppy cove and let the wind and salt spray cover me. The warmth of the sun felt good on my skin… the rhythmic motion of the boat as we bobbed over the waves soothed my soul.  Sunlight like diamonds on the waters before me… looking out into the Atlantic waters  from the safety  of our little cove… all I could think of was how healing it might be if I could instill that calmness, that appreciation of the beauty of our shared world, in the hearts of the men who can’t see beyond their own egos and greed.  
  I have been trying, lately, to avoid watching too much of the news – to refrain from spewing my disgust on social media… taking some advice from my son, the 21 year old who hasn’t been around as long as I have.. yet.   “Mom, why get yourself all worked up over something you have no control over. It’s not worth the price, let it go“.   
 Like ego and greed, another simple truth, yes?  Out of the mouths of not a babe anymore, but youth nevertheless. 
   So I’m taking more walks with my dogs…  
   My old boy, Ben, and I took a stroll last night in the fields just before dark.  The sky seemed restless, moisture and humidity have returned and I wonder if this is the beginning of the newest hurricane heading toward the states.  More stormy weather ahead…. 

     
    I’m not religious, but I believe in the power of prayer – go figure.  Praying for the safety of all in Hurricane Irma’s path – praying for the healing of our people all over the world – praying for sanity and good will to settle in the hearts of our leaders so that we avoid destroying ourselves in the pursuit of… Greatness?  *sigh.  We already have profound greatness…. beauty, bounty, resources. May we collectively figure out how not to destroy it. 
 Till soon, friends… 

People let me tell ya ’bout my best friend

    Can anyone tell me where that line came from?   It should apply to our canine companions, truly wo(man)’s best friend.  So much we could learn from them, should learn from them.  They live in the moment, they forgive as quickly as the offense took place, they love unconditionally, they accept everything as it is, they don’t judge, their needs are so very simple. Uncomplicated beings.  If only we could all follow suit.  Alas, we are far too complex a creature. 
  I am lucky enough to work from home, whether it’s on the farm out back or in this house as it’s domestic engineer or at this computer editing, editing, editing. My coworkers are my dogs. Right now as I sit here typing, they surround me contented that I am near, the rat-tat-tat of the keyboard lulling them to sleep.   Their presence in my daily life is a treasure and I know many of you feel the same for your canine family members. 
   While I may feel  a little lost in this empty nest at times…. these characters keep me grounded with their expressions, their pure joys, their contentment at living in the moment in the company of the peoples that they love.  There are some that say dogs don’t feel or understand love.  I say they’ve never lived with a dog, never truly loved a dog. Because if they did, then they would know a whole new language and perhaps gain a new respect for these beings we are so lucky to have in our presence.  Is there any mistaking the look on that face above… he knows by the jangle of the car keys in my hand that I am going out on an errand and he is staying behind.  
  I’ve got a dog biscuit recipe to share with you today – the person who gave the recipe to me calls them Newf bars because she has a giant newfoundland  named Carbon who loves them. 
Home Made Newf Bars for Dogs

6 cups oatmeal
4 eggs
1/3 cup honey
1 cup milk 
2 mashed bananas (optional)
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup oil
1/4 cup molasses
1 large can solid pack pumpkin (also optional)

Preheat oven to 325. Grease cookie sheet that has lip. Dump all ingredients in large bowl. Mix the whole mess together using your hands (easiest- and tip: remove rings beforehand).  Pat onto greased cookie sheet and bake for 1 hour. Turn off oven, crack door open and allow cookies to cool in the oven. Break into whatever size you want.  These freeze really well too. 

When opposites occupy one household

   First.. thank you to all who commented on my Fibro post the other day – your input is so appreciated as I navigate this -thing-.   I’m changing my diet to stay away from gluten, dairy and pork, I’m going to lose that damned 15 lbs and I am continuing to work out, even when it hurts.  I’m talking a magnesium supplement and I am going to try like heck to get more sleep and less stress. 
    Speaking of which…. the post title.  *sigh   I love my husband, he’s got many good qualities.  We all have some crap qualities too, and with luck and effort we manage to find balance and happiness most of the time with our chosen partners.  When it comes to politics, we in this house are polar opposites on some very important things.  And yet we agree on others.  He is a dyed in the wool Republican, I am unaffiliated.  I believe the party system divides us further, and what this nation does not need is further division.  ( Man, the headlines lately.  Not even going there, we’re all sick over it.)
   We are so divided on some big issues, that we have vowed not to talk politics with each other, period.  How far do you think that got us?   It’s just about impossible, and leads to some pretty heated discussions.  Neither of us is going to change the others mind, so the arguing is futile.  And yet.   Have you ever looked at your significant other  with disgust and thought…. how can he/she possibly think that way?    I’m sure my husband has the same thoughts about me on occasion.  What is most damaging is when the person you have chosen to share your life with treats your ideas as if they are ridiculous and without any value or berates your intelligence just because your views are different than his/hers.  I try not to do that, but I don’t always succeed. Neither does my other half.  Wouldn’t it be awesome if those in the BIG HOUSE could figure out how to debate and find solutions for the BIG STUFF  without doing the same.   And yet… 
   The Dog Days Of Summer are here… nothing like the A/C to keep those dogs cool. 
 Three little eggs in the nest made in a wreath on my front door.  One hatched so far… 
   Hoping you are all finding peace of mind in the lazy days of Summer and may there we Peace on this restless earth once and for all………..
Just Sayin- 
   

Snow and a tale of two sisters…

    Ah, the lovely snow we’ve accumulated in a sudden storm that was going to be  “just an inch or two”… they said.  “not much at all”… they said.

Poor Frasier gets snowballs stuck to his fur… 
I’m debating pulling out the clippers this afternoon. 

 My new neighbor, who lives in the cabin on the hill behind This Old House, is on her way home from Pennsylvania  right now with not one, but TWO puppies she adopted from one of our rescues down there.  It’s a beautiful thing… these two sisters will get to grow up together  here in Connecticut, right up there on the hill.   Their mom was a lab and their dad is unknown.  Mom was pulled from a kill shelter, pregnant… and cared for by our friend, an ACO who helps with our adoption events.  Mom wasn’t particularly fond of being a mom in the beginning, and these girls and their siblings had to be bottle fed for a while until she figured things out.  Or accepted her new roll?… Anyway.. she will be spayed and these two girls are the last in the litter to be adopted.   All is well that ends well.

 I hope I get to hug them a little later today…………….

This I know for sure…

    … life is so enriched when you have the love of and for a dog.  If you never take anything else away from reading my blog drivel… please know.. believe…  that they feel, they love, they adore, they cherish, they hurt, they worry,  they grieve.  For those who have said to me – Oh, it’s all about the food, you give them the food and so they follow you around –   well,  if you believe that … you are missing out on one of the best relationships ever bestowed on us –  truth, that. 
   I will never forget an experience I had with my dachshund, little Rudy – the piss pot.   My daughter had just been in a horrible car accident and was lying in a coma at Yale.  I came home to change clothes and collapsed on my bed in tears. It was the first time I let loose since the accident and the sobs wracked my body. Suddenly I realize I heard a wailing beside me that was not my own.  It was Rudy – who had jumped up on the bed, laid next to me and began crying right beside me. 
    Ben is a very sensitive soul – he does not like when we argue in this house and lets us know immediately if there is tension in our voices.  And hey – we’re Italian, it is what it is.   He loves his bed and blankets and pillow and walks in the hayfields behind the house.  His face actually scrunches up in a smile when I tell him -let’s go for a walk-.  
   When I was sick on the bathroom floor with a migraine (you might know that kind)… Frasier sat beside me, tucked up against me, worried. 
  Bailey LOVES bedtime where she can tuck up against Mike or myself for the night.  On nights that I can’t sleep (thank you, menopausal mania) .. she watches Golden Girls reruns with me. 
  When I meet the shelter dogs who come into our fold while we try to get them homes, they are sooooo grateful to be out of whatever hell they just came from.  The emotion is amazing.. can’t explain it any other way. 
  Let me not got to any Heaven where there are no dogs…. 

Lets ramble through…

 Feel free to chime in on any of the below mentioned items…..

 How about them Patriots?!!!…. Yes I’m a fan.. and boy did they come through in a clutch, once again.  I can’t stand the arrogance in the Seahawk camp and while it was very unfortunate that they made a really bad mistake at the very end of the game, they deserved it.  As for deflate gate, funny video here.  But.. they’re all lying… because I AM THE LOCKER ROOM GAL. 
*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Sarah Palin… I know some of my readers are fans.  I have never understood the following, and the fact that she still has some support and is given any platform at all is just.. wow.  But.. I’m going to venture to guess that the brave souls who still stand in her camp are quietly backing away at this point because… the freedom speech.  And hey, if you’re going to defend her with  “Her Teleprompter broke!”…. then my answer is…. Yeah.. so you got the REAL DEAL right then and there. Boom.  
   I get that we are all weary and want change.  Change is needed, no doubt… but this -ain’t it – .  
Didn’t catch the speech?  Here’s just an excerpt.. one of the more coherent. 
“Things must change for our government. Look at it. It isn’t too big to fail. It’s too big to succeed! It’s too big to succeed, so we can afford no retreads or nothing will change with the same people and same policies that got us into the status quo. Another Latin word, status quo, and it stands for, ‘Man, the middle-class everyday Americans are really gettin’ taken for a ride.’ That’s status quo, and GOP leaders, by the way, y’know the man can only ride ya when your back is bent. So strengthen it. Then the man can’t ride ya, America won’t be taken for a ride, because so much is at stake and we can’t afford politicians playing games like nothing more is at stake than, oh, maybe just the next standing of theirs in the next election.”

Ouch. 
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
 It’s snowing, sleeting, raining again here in Connecticut.   I’ve just come in from shoveling paths to the dog run, the barn, the chicken coop and rabbit hutch.  These are the times when I ask myself the question… .”Why do I have all these animals again??”… but you know.. the consolation is.. I love to eat.  Without all this work, I’d probably weight 200 lbs.   And theres all the love.    All you need is LOVE… and a dog. (.. or four….. and a few horses, rabbits, chickens and fish… apparently). 
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
I’m going back to an official work status and the task of turning my office back into an actual office meant we had to toss Bens queen size mattress and buy him something smaller, a twin.  He’s still getting used to it.  Most of the time he has figured out how to fit his entire being on it quite nicely. 
Sometimes it’s just all wrong. 
 ^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Apple Chicken Sausage recipe HERE
Delicious, healthy, easy to make and comforting on a cold winters night. 
Speaking of recipes.. I’m not much of a drinker.. but now and then 
a good one is just refreshing and the load becomes a little lighter
with just a little buzz. I was recently introduced to this drink and it’s a winner in my book.
Dark & Stormy
Ingredients:
Goslings Ginger Beer
Goslings Dark Bermuda Rum
Lime, Ice
Fill a tall glass with ice. Pour in about an inch of  rum. Fill the rest of the glass with Ginger Beer. Squeeze a large wedge of lime into the drink and drop the slice in.  Stir.. enjoy.   YUM!
It’s a new day, all!.. Let’s make it a good one. 

Heartworm Disease in Dogs.

    When I adopted Frasier and had him thoroughly check out by my vet, it was discovered he had a good case of heartworm, which, if untreated, will eventually kill the dog.  The worms suffocate the heart and lungs, etc.  The treatment is expensive (about $700.) but necessary.  And.. there is a three to five month – Keep the dog calm and quiet – period of time because the dying worms start traveling through their bloodstream and you don’t want them getting caught up in the heart, lungs, etc… causing paralysis or death.   Ugh. THAT.. was no easy feat with Frasier.

   So, Ben had a skin tag thing on his leg and I brought him to the vet to have it checked and removed earlier this week. While there he had his yearly heartworm and Lyme test.  I got the call the next day – both came back positive.  WHAT?   I do give my dogs heartworm pills, but not during the winter months because mosquitos don’t live here in those seasons.  Down south the problem is much more prevalent. This is where Frasier came from.   SO… how did BEN get it?…. I freaked a little.  Had all four dogs brought back and tested .. all are negative.  After a second heartworm test in house on Ben, it was decided the first one was a false positive, especially since he has no evidence of heartworm disease.  I’m glad he doesn’t have heartworm, kind of alarming that the first came back positive, falsely.  He’s on Doxycycline for the Lyme disease, which is far too common in humans and animals in New England.

 Lesson here – always ask for a second test with heartworm if you get a postive test result, because they can be inaccurate and the treatment is rough on the dog and costly.   Also, don’t skimp on the monthly treatment… although here in the north where the winters are cold, it’s OK according to my vet to skip the very cold winter months.  Not doing so puts you at risk for a costly and difficult treatment for your dog.

Getting it out of the house

 As I sit here typing, the snow flurries float past my windows and shortly I shall be pulling up the bootstraps and putting on the layers to trudge up the hill to the barn.  While I adore my horses and chickens, these are the days when I say… “why am I doing this, again?”   *sigh*

 I got the rest of WINTER out of my house.  I don’t need to see it INSIDE as well as outside.  This here is the stretch of New England Grey days that could drag a spirit down if you let it be so.  I bring out the hearts right about now every year.  

 My Christmas Cactus is a little confused… but I like the result.

…and who doesn’t love crocus in bloom when snow still rests on the lawn. 
(thank you Raven)
Last years Hydrangea dried beautifully… all I did was snip the blooms in early fall before they
withered, and stuck the stems in these vessels… They’ve held up very well. 
My winter mantle and side board table are now something a little more cheery, 
a reminder of the gardens that will bloom again. 
Bailey’s favorite spot – winter sun on the hearth…

 Amazing, how well they dry and hold up. 

I love the old plow horse shoes we find now and then on the farm..
some are buried in the old stone walls, some were used as fence rail holders.
If I were sew-handy I would make a skirt to attach under this side table. 
Any recommendations? 
Maybe I can tack a curtain along the underneath?  Hmmm…
Many dog day afternoons lately, too cold to stay out for very long,
too lazy to do the bundling up required to go for those nice long walks.

Off to the barn and coop – 
It’s a new day, all! – you know the drill…
SALLY in Florida.. had the correct ending to my  post yesterday..
It’s a Beautiful Thing!
She’ll be getting a few fun gifts in the mail shortly.