Big Wave
In the Forest
Night Road
Stormy Wave
Andrii Frolov Art – @kznsq on X
Tuesday Thoughts 9-26-2023
This is poor Amber wearing a large plastic cone to keep her from chewing out her stitches on her arm, as she DID right before she was brought to us to take home after her surgery and tests yesterday. Our vet didn’t have one her size, so we drove to Tractor Supply to get one.
She shed the band-aid and wrapping the vet put on her elbow just before we put her in the truck, so I got a huge band-aid from our supplies and used the vet wrap we keep on hand to cover it again. She shed THAT, too. The ‘elbow’ is a difficult place to wrap up. Since she can’t reach the stitches now to chew, I’m just leaving it uncovered.
As all dogs do, she hates the cone. She is slowly adapting. I just ordered a SOFT one from Amazon, since when I called the vet to schedule her two-week follow-up appointment and ask how long Amber should wear the cone, the answer was ‘at least a week, and possibly ’til she comes to get her stitches out in two weeks.’ She still won’t like the cone, but this soft one will be more comfortable. It should be delivered tomorrow.
The big thing is healing now. She is feeling better and the lump in her neck is getting smaller. The other big thing is watching my husband, who ALMOST took one of Amber’s antibiotic pills this morning…
Filed under Family
Life is Too Short
This morning we fought our way through what my husband calls, “The Mommy Traffic” where moms are dropping their kids off at school in order to get Amber to the vet’s office for her leg surgery and the fine needle aspiration of the lump in her neck.
We made a quick trip to Walmart and then my husband suggested we have breakfast at The Dari, one of our favorite places in Greenwood. I’m on DAY 3 of my Intermittent Fasting addition to my diet and managed to get a pound off this morning, so I thought, “No.” THEN I started fighting with myself. We eat breakfast at The Dari after we get blood tests for upcoming doctor visits – that’s twice a year. What is one more time in the grand scheme of things. If I do the fasting like I should all the other days, wouldn’t that outweigh one breakfast with my husband? We ate there, both enjoying a big, no-holes-barred breakfast, where every bite was delicious, and we also splurged with orange juice. It was wonderful.
We are ready to leave our trash at the bottom of the driveway when they call and tell us Amber is ready to be picked up. Now is the hard part of the day – the waiting. The lady at the vet’s office said they might call or text with updates, but that Amber would definitely be ready to be picked up after 4pm today. (They close at 5:30). Our vet suspects cancer, so I don’t want to be waiting for a call. The lady said they might or might not know the results of the test today. Part of me is hurting already. The other part is numb. Part of me is watching my cell phone. The other part wants to go somewhere and cover up my head. Wishing I had a magic wand…
HAD to Share
(This was from Enezator – @Enezator on X)
I’m STILL laughing out loud and snorting – even while I probably looked much the same as this young lady while I was baking my first EVER biscuits yesterday…
Filed under Videos
Healing with Herbs
Healing with Herbs – Embracing the Power of Nature for a Natural Lifestyle by Norah Halstead
This is a good beginner book on growing herbs to be used in a holistic, more natural way to treat health problems and concerns. It, of course, cautions you to talk with your healthcare provider before you start adding to your synthetic, commercial options or doing any substituting, but herbal remedies are said to be safer than what you might be taking or using now.
There are good sections on growing your own herbs, storing them for use as dried herbs, essential oils, or salves, or including them in your meals for general well being. There is also a guide to more information in books and websites on the subject.
I particularly liked a section on building your own “herbal first aid kit.”
I have long thought about the idea of growing herbs on my divider in my kitchen so I can pinch off a bit to use in cooking. I’ve also been impressed by people who know which herb is good for upset stomach, or what to brew in a tea to help you sleep better. I like the idea of being able to substitute some herbs for commercial stuff I’m taking where possible.
This book is a good start on healing herbs. I will keep it for reference. I want to read more, but I’m getting less intimidated by the whole idea of fresh herbs than I used to be.
Filed under Book - Movie - TV Reviews, taking care of yourself
Angie Wallace Fine Art
Filed under Angie Wallace Fine Art, animal paintings
Sunday Thoughts 9-24-2023
Ales Krivec – Unsplash
The view out our back door looks much like this today. 75 degrees with 91% humidity. UGH. The valley has ‘cotton’ threaded through the valleys. Surreal. The weather folks can’t decide if we’ll get rain or not. Their wise forecast is ‘Maybe.’ :0)
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The steroid shot and eye cream the vet gave Amber yesterday allowed her to calm down and sleep well. She ate with appetite and was her usual barky-take-the-world-by-storm self as I let her out this morning. She was 97 lbs at the vet’s office yesterday, and almost pulled my husband down while we were trying to get her into the office and then into a room to be seen.
We take her tomorrow morning 1st thing for the surgery to remove the knot from her leg and the fine needle aspiration of the lump in her neck. We’ll deal with the diagnosis when it comes in. The big thing RIGHT NOW is to remember to put her food bowl somewhere weird tonight after dinner so that my husband doesn’t feed her automatically in the morning before he’s fully awake. I’ll also try to get him to wear his sneakers, rather than his sandals, so that he has a bit of traction on dealing with Amber at the vet’s.
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I made a bit of progress yesterday on the glassware I’m trying to etch for my friends. Soon I’ll try to figure out more details. I’m doing the free-form etching now, and of course it looks very different from the cream-with-stencils part I’ve already done. I’m trying to decide if I want to leave the cream etching as it is or try to outline the designs with the engraving pen. Then there’s the question of whether to leave them as they are at that point or use some glass paint on them. So many decisions on a project I don’t know will ‘work…’
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Women’s Health
Shout-out to Cathy, who has finished her radiation and chemo! She sees her doc Wednesday, and meanwhile is resting and trying to eat well and regain strength. Sending lots of gentle, heartfelt hugs your way today, Girl!
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Champagne Flutes “Copper Flowers” One-of-a-kind, hand-painted pair – $41.99 with FREE SHIPPING to the contiguous U.S. HandmadeHavenByLinda on Etsy
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And in the “Awwww – Isn’t she cute” category –
I made the first biscuits of my life yesterday! I used a recipe I found on YouTube, threw caution and intimidation to the winds and tried it. The best part is that my husband said, “These are good. I want to eat a couple tomorrow with butter and jelly.” They LOOKED right. They were edible. I DID IT! I know it isn’t cute anymore that I’ve found something ELSE I’ve never done and might suck at, but I’m patting myself on the back this morning as I type this. Can you see me grinning?
BoredPanda.com
Happy Sunday!
Never Too Much Peter Hogarth
Peter Hogarth Animal Portraits – @peterhogarth55 on X
Filed under animal paintings, drawings, Peter Hogarth - Artist
Trying to be an Adult
We just got home from taking Amber to the vet.
Two days ago she came in with swollen eyes. Yesterday the swelling was down and she seemed to be improving. This morning I called the vet’s office and we saw the vet first thing.
He gave her a shot and gave us some cream to put in her eyes twice a day. The only diagnosis was, ‘she got into something.’ (with our yard and Amber’s personality, it’s a question of which hole did she NOT put her nose into, or which stand of weeds did she NOT run through, or which critter did she NOT confront. )
The rest of the exam was concerning, though. We pointed out a knot on her front leg and a lump on her belly. The vet wants to remove the knot. He isn’t concerned about the knot itself, but the healing that is needed for sutures after should it continue to grow. The lump on her belly is a fatty tumor. He’s not concerned about that, either.
What we DIDN’T notice was a lump on her neck. He IS concerned about that. We will take her in first thing Monday morning for a fine needle aspiration of that neck lump plus removal of the knot on her leg. The vet is concerned the lump in the neck may indicate cancer.
I’m concentrating this weekend on getting the cream in her eyes about 4 pm and 8pm today, twice tomorrow, and then getting her to the vet by 8:30 a.m. Monday (remembering to bring her in on an empty stomach).
I’m trying to be an adult about the possibility of cancer. I’ll try to keep busy the rest of the weekend, and do my worrying when we know what we’re dealing with.
Filed under Challenges, Family
Ken James Photography 3
Ken James Photography – @openshutter21 on X
Josh Gluckstein Paper Sculpture 3
Josh Gluckstein Paper Sculpture – Hidreley – BoredPanda.com
Filed under Josh Gluckstein Paper Sculpture, paper art
Fasting as Fast as I Can
I read Intermittent Fasting for Seniors by Norah Halstead yesterday. Since I’m having real trouble losing weight and I am definitely a ‘Senior,’ I wanted to know what she thought.
She presented 3 choices as to methods of fasting. I didn’t even realize I had a choice! I think I’m going to try the one where I fast from 8pm until the next day at noon.
She also discusses taking into account your health condition or concerns, any schedules on taking your medicines, and, of course, talking to your doctor to make sure it’s a good idea for you. She stresses eating healthy whole foods during your ‘eating window.’
There is a good section on sources for the information she provides so that you can read further or clarify anything you would like.
If you’re considering this alternative to a diet, or addition to one you’re already on, reading this book may sway you one way or the other.
Filed under Book - Movie - TV Reviews
Puppy vs Rain
We’ll have a rainy drive to Lunch Bunch this morning. I haven’t heard from anybody, but these days that doesn’t mean anything.
Gif-King
I would text, but only one of my friends HAS a text ability. I would call, but no one answers their phone anymore. I would leave a message, but one has a message saying their box is full and the other says she doesn’t get the message… Getting old has its challenges. We’ll see if anyone else is there, getting our lunch before coming home.
Britannica
My sloth imitation is getting super-good lately. My nails aren’t nearly as long, but I have the laziness down pat. :0) Yesterday I DID vacuum the first floor tiles, but only because the white hairballs were grabbing at our legs as we walked by. I’m doing laundry this morning, but for some reason my get-up-and-go has gotten up and gone.
I AM doing some etching on the gift glassware – a bit each day. I’m really not sure I’ll end up with something I want to give my friends or not.
Filed under Thoughts on a ________
Josh Gluckstein Paper 2
Josh Gluckstein Paper Sculpture – Hidreley – BoredPanda.com
Filed under Josh Gluckstein Paper Sculpture, paper art
Thomas W. Schaller Watercolor 2
Thomas W. Schaller – @twschaller on X
Thursday 9-21-2023
brendapokornymosaics.com
Isn’t this stunning?
For some reason, I have to keep checking my watch to confirm what day it is. It seems like Saturday. I don’t know why.
Frontier Waste Solutions
When it IS Saturday, we have a ‘date’ with some dumpsters at the Sebastian County Road Department, where we can take the stuff we’ve been wanting to get rid of (with some restrictions, of course) between 7am and 2pm. HOORAY!
We’re having a beautiful day today, sunny and 76 degrees.
These light-weight hand-painted wooden teardrop-shaped 2″ dangle earrings will help you celebrate fall in comfort and style. $13.85 with FREE SHIPPING to the contiguous U.S. HandmadeHavenByLinda on Etsy
Norah Halstead – From Brush to Canvas
Norah Halstead – From Brush to Canvas – A Journey through the world of Landscape Painting for Artistic Souls
Norah discusses the different types of landscape painting, some of the tools required, a few ideas of marketing your finished paintings, and more.
This is a good introduction to the importance of deciding what you want to DO with your paintings – whether your aim is to paint realistic versions of what you see in front of you at a particular point in time, or an impressionistic version that brings out the emotion and atmosphere of an area, whether you prefer desert, mountains, cities, oceans, and the importance of paying attention to the wonder of the world around you.
She concentrates on really taking the time to SEE and appreciate – the time of day, the light and shadows, the textures, colors, the mixture of ‘scapes,’ such as a coastal city and the differences in techniques and pallets that requires, whether to include people or not.
An overview of the subject, trying to get you to pick up your brushes and dive in, not being afraid to experiment in trying to express your impressions of the world around you.
My initial reaction to reading this is to decide I like ‘impressionism’ and that I personally wouldn’t like to do ‘plein air’ painting because I would be embarrassed to be out where people might come and want to see what I was doing. Since I would be embarrassed that my painting wouldn’t look a THING like what I was obviously trying to paint, I would want to be sucked down into the earth. I would much rather work from a photo or other image of some kind, and I like the idea of going for an emotion or atmosphere, rather than realism.
Filed under Book - Movie - TV Reviews
Furball: The Well Mannered Pup – A Review
Okay. You’ve fallen in love with a ball of fur who is busily licking your face and making you laugh. With the furball, you’ve brought home a collar, food and water dishes, a leash – maybe a bed. Now what?
You’ve taken on this big responsibility of not only accepting a new member into your family, but will need to make sure your dog is not a menace to the neighborhood, doesn’t eat your husband’s shoes, knows to go outside to pee, doesn’t bite your best friend…
Norah Halstead’s book, ‘Furball: The well mannered pup will bring up all these questions and ones you haven’t thought of yet, giving you some broad guidelines on how to get started on a firm foundation for all of you. She covers housebreaking, socialization, where your furbaby should sleep, what you should teach him or her, and more. There is also a good section on other sources to get further help.
Nice beginning book that will get you started in pupdom.
After reading this book, I’m making a promise to myself to include further leash training with my dog, Amber, who minds us when we are all by ourselves at home, but looks at us as if she has never seen us before and has suddenly gone completely deaf when someone comes to the house.
If we need to take Amber to the vet, she is 95 pounds of eager dogdum who can become fixated on getting where she wants to go regardless of whether she is on a leash or not. I need to work on that.
Also, the suggestion that you invite someone to your home (preferably a good, patient friend) who will sit there patiently watching you try to get your dog to do the stuff he or she does quite readily usually, but suddenly is only interested in visiting with your friend, is a good one for us.
Good luck!
Filed under Book - Movie - TV Reviews
More Drooling Over Erika Kocsi
I love Erika’s beautiful watercolors, but I particularly drool over her expertise on light and shadows which brings such life to her work. Incredible.
Erika Kocsi – @kocsi_erika on X
Celebration!
Gfycat
No marching bands played. No confetti was thrown. No champagne corks were popped. No parades walked past, but the Lewises celebrated being able to drive the ‘old’ shorter way to town yesterday over the brand, spanking-new bridge! WOO HOOOOOOOOOO!
We actually had to REMIND each other on the way back from getting groceries that we could turn in on the old road to go home, rather than bypass it to travel several miles down farther where we could return to the house the detour way while they’ve been working on the bridge. :0)
SOOOOOO NICE!
We won’t even get a chance to take it for granted because of the PHASE 1 of the Greenwood Bypass project, slated to start sometime in November of this year. We’ll worry about that when it comes, though. Meanwhile, we are really happy to be able to simply drive to town when we would like to, using our regular roads…
Filed under Cause for Celebration
Rainy Wednesday 9-20-2023
“Frog Rain” –Displate-prints on metal
My computer says it’s 68 right now, but our thermometers say, “60”. Whatever the temperature, it feels a bit cool and is rainy. We’re grateful to have a warm, dry house and no have-to errands today.
I just added two new signs I painted to my Etsy site –
I’m working very slowly and carefully, trying to add my own free-form engraving/etching to the glassware I put chemical etching designs on for my friends. I have no idea if this will turn out well enough for me to give to them, or I’ll end up pitching them and starting something else. I’m having a good time trying, though it’s a bit stressful and I’m having to do just a little bit at a time.
I hope that this rainy Wednesday is a nice one for you and that you are able to find something enjoyable to do with at least part of the day.
Josh Gluckstein Paper Sculpture
@joshglucksteinartist on Instagram
Filed under Josh Gluckstein Paper Sculpture, paper art
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