A NEW DAY, A NEW YEAR ~

I really couldn't think of a better way to spend New Year's Day.

Doing what I most like to do every day.

And thankful I have the right, the freedom ~ the safe home, the warmth and comfort,

and someone who watches over me ~ that allows me to do this.

I am thankful for all that I have.

Thankful for this new day, this new year, 

thankful for you, my friends ~ and thankful for mine Mommy.

My wish for the new year ahead is that many more people will also

have the freedom that I have, and that many more animals

will be blessed with homes as I have been,

and that the kinda sorta upside-down world will start to right-side-up

itself once again ~ for all that, I'd be really really thankful.

Now, I'm going back to sleep, meowz.

THANKFUL THURSDAY

CLEAN UP and TIDY UP

Yesterday, I kinda sorta knew something was happening 'cause mine Mommy was on the phone with her really good friend, they talk like almost every day, but she was laughing a lot.  He lives way West in Maryland, so far that when he puts his hand out his window he wiggles his fingers in West Virginia!!  Anywayz, I asked her what was so funny and she said he said, "he had to clean his apartment really good and get all his laundry done spic 'n' span for all the days ahead, cause his grandma had always taught him that you wouldn't have a clean and tidy life if'n you didn't clean up and tidy up the one you were leaving behind!"  Mine Mommy thought that was both an amusing but practical tradition (which I did not understand at all) and she spent much of the day busily cleaning-and-tidying up where we live!

Then early this morning she had to put the trash down, one of the things she never finished up yesterday.  She often leaves the door open so I can have one of my little walkabouts up and down our hallway, so out I went.  I saw the holiday wreath on Miss Pat's door with the jingle bells I could hear when she came and went, but they were too high up for me to jump and get them, though they'd have been fun to play with.  Of course, I went to Mr. Robert's door, my favorite ~ he has decals of animals all over his door ~ all kinds of cats and dogs and even zoo animals and I love looking at them.  He once told mine Mommy his entire living room wall is covered with more, mostly kitties and puppies, that sounds so cool to me!  Anywayz, I saw mine Mommy on her way back home so I hurried to follow after her ...

But as I turned to come in our door, I bumped into Mr. Cliff's front door (he lives right across the hall from me) and  suddenly my nose and my whiskers got tickled and I even sneezed a little sneeze and I looked over and up at his door to see all these shiny and sparkly and colorful sprinkles and stars falling from above, all pretty and bright and wonderful (even though tickly) and then I knew.  I knew what it was all about ... it was the time of year when all the human peoples go all silly and have all these traditions and either get happy (or not) because one year is ending and another is beginning.  Sometimes they are filled with lots of hopes and plans that lots of things will get better, sometimes they are sad because the year they're leaving behind had sadness in it.  But this change takes place whatever they are feeling.  As a cat, it doesn't matter a lot to me.  One day, one week, a new year will be kinda sorta just like another.

But on behalf of me and mine Mommy, I will say I hope if you are wanting for some new and better things in the new year ahead, well, work toward that and do your best to make it real.  Mine Mommy says she thinks the world has been a messy, not really good world this past one and we all need to get our act together going forward and do a better job with each other and for each other.  

Me, well, I'm going to go get most of these sprinkles off my nose right now.  I might leave a few of them on until tomorrow as a reminder ... of whatever I, you, all of us need to be reminded of each day, to get through the year ahead.  You know, like maybe cleaning up and tidying up the messy mess all 'round us ... 

"I THINK I CAN"

HAPPY TUESDAY

 

GOOD MORNING SUNSHINE

HAPPY MONDAY

 

THE QUIET AFTER ~

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ~

We met at a business lunch in Washington, DC.  We married the same year in Georgetown.  Our two children were born in the nation's capital.  And for two decades we worked there, living across the Potomac in northern Virginia ~ until a job opportunity too good to turn down took us to southwestern Michigan.  

He always preferred the sun and warmth, the palm trees and beaches of the South, but he put on his big-boy pants and put up with walking on the frozen iced shores of Lake Michigan [which I loved].

A favorite photo of mine ~ of him.

A favorite photo of his ~ of me.

Life changes, and another opportunity found us leaving those icy shores and moving then to the sunny beaches of Florida that he loved so much.  Raking leaves and shoveling snow was no more, exchanged for gathering fallen palm fronds and annually doing hurricane prep.  Kids who were teens, then off to college followed by building new lives for themselves, as we also built a new life for ourselves.  And over these years, I ~ always a "dog person" had been transformed to a cat lover by him.

Had he stuck around we'd be celebrating his birthday today, as we would have shared our 51st wedding anniversary last month at Thanksgiving.  But those who choose to be together, don't always get to choose when not to be together [yes, I'm not naive, knowing some make that choice for themselves].  For us, the choice was not ours and he left too soon.

I'm seeing a silverware drawer, typically messy, but two spoons nested together.  That was us.  Most of the time anyway.  Sometimes the opening or closing of the drawer causes a fork or a knife to come between those spoons, albeit temporarily, and with a little effort they find their way back together.  Nesting again.

Much more about us, nesting, here.

 

DAY AFTER CHRISTMAS: TO DO LIST

When I got up this morning I wondered what I would do all day long now that the excitement and fun, the sparkle and shine of Christmas was all over.  And it was just another ordinary day.  I had my breakfast, I of course used the litter loo room (probably didn't need to share that, sorry) and even though still dark outside, did do my obligatory check of early morning activity on Charles Street ~ not much I admit.

So, I asked mine Mommy if we were going to take down all the holiday decorations since Christmas was over, she said "oh noes, that doesn't happen until Little Christmas comes on January 6," and of course I got all excited thinking more treats and toys were on the way very soon, until she told me the story of Little Christmas and I realized that wouldn't really happen ... meowz, but I did like the story.  And she added that today was Boxing Day so maybe that's how I could spend today, knowing how much I loved boxes, but now I could play with ones that were even purrty and colorful and still had some wrapping and bows and meowz ... so, meowz again ... I had my To Do List Done!  

Isn't this the most wonderful box?

I think I'll spend the whole day in it.

Then I asked mine Mommy what was on her To Do List for the Day After Christmas and she said, "a few chores, Juney," and I said what else, and she purred "one really big impawtent thing, you see yesterday I took you visiting to share Christmas wishes with your friends, but your Mommy's fingers got tired and her hands got shakey and so I had to keep stopping to rest.  Of course, it was kinda sorta fun for us, right? Cause during those little breaks I'd eat a piece of chocolate and you'd get some dried salmon treats. So all day long we both had lots of treats, way more than on a regular day!"  Oh my, meowz, yes that part was fun!

But mine Mommy, that's not good, cause I didn't get to visit everyfurry.  "I know dear.  So, today, we'll do some chores, like laundry (which no one cares about), and while it's washing we can take you visiting to those we missed yesterday.  And then when we put it in the dryer, we can take you visiting again to others we missed ... and maybe by the time the laundry is done, you will have been able to visit all your friends even though it's the day after Christmas and hopefully they won't mind if you're a little bit late stopping by."  

OK mine Mommy, that sounds good, now I'm going to get back in my box, let me know when you go put the laundry in and when it's time to start our visiting ... I'll be ready, meowz.

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