Time Outs of All Sorts in Everyday Ramblings

I took this hazy fall field shot last Saturday down by the fast flowing river on a walk with Kes. We had the sun at our backs and that was delightful after the storms. It turned cold after that though.

But now out at the coast on our semi-annual pilgrimage the sun has just unexpectedly come out as well. I went for a lovely solitary walk along the tide line for an hour just after sunrise and came back for breakfast. There was a group of about 50 Western gulls, juveniles and adults and mixed in with them about 35 or so Brown Pelicans. A bird dog came loping out of the dunes and scared them off but they all came back. While out I saw maybe 4 people. The dogs here are happy.

We came out a day early this time. The owners love us as renters and they gave us these 3 nights and 4 days free this time around. We are very lucky. Most Honorable had classes to teach yesterday so it is just Kes and I until this afternoon. I took the bus down to Salem midday yesterday and then it a straight shot over the coast range here and much less driving.

We agreed on a simple slow cooker bean dish with lots of veggies and a little sausage so we didn’t need to cook yesterday. That was nice. We read and she knitted and I did some yoga and we chatted.

These getaways are always so welcome but after the stress and sadness this summer I am thrilled to be here. And feeling centered and happy and content. It is great it didn’t take long to get to this place both metaphorically and physically.

Wednesday evening I received my key charm and lifetime membership card at Weight Watchers. That was warm and sweet and uplifting and everybody at my meeting was very proud of me. I was touched and realized that hitting my goal weight was something I did very much for me, but sticking in there on maintenance and showing up to publically receive my lifetime card was clearly very motivational to the group.

In the nine months I have been going to that meeting no one else has reached lifetime and now I am hoping there will be others.

My thigh leg hip thing is definitely better. It is still there but happens less often and is less painful. I am thrilled to have some progress because it means I will heal. It is the not knowing that is crazy making.

We changed up Sammy’s medicines and switched his fluid giving routine to less volume but every day now and he is responding well. He is still talking trash about the indignities of this life as a spoiled tough guy and I am still making him sleep on the heated cat bed wrapped in his polar tech blanket out in the front room and we are both better rested for not waking each other up.

It is looking as if he’ll be hanging in there for a good while now with this care regime as long as his little big guy heart doesn’t give out. For me this involves an attitude adjustment.

I’ll be caregiver cat mom for some indefinite period. It is amazing how used to it all we have both become this year. He still has nippy days and I still hate sticking him but we manage. He hasn’t lost any weight and that astonishes me considering how sick he is. Both in human and feline health we are making amazing strides…

Now if we can just get OD to work properly and the absolute ridiculous intransigence our freely elected officials are displaying in Washington to soften a tad and get all those people scared out of their wits about the future back to work.

Trying to look at the bright side having all the National Wildlife refuges closed is a nice vacation from human contact for all the wildlife there.

Given enough time maybe even the Brown Pelicans will figure out they will be safe from rowdy bird dogs there…