Palm Sunday

I keep checking this blog and there are no new posts!!! It's been a long month of mostly rain. Today turned out dry, warm, and sunny, but it started out with a power outage. I never figured out if it was just my house or everyone's. All I could think of is how much my life is tied to electricity. Blue and I made it over to New Season's and got a cup of coffee so I could plan my next step. By the time we got back home the power was on again. But just stop for a moment and think of the things you can't do without electricity.

Besides, no fresh coffee, you can't heat up the old coffee. You can't make toast. You can't turn on the tv or radio to find out if everyone else's power's out. You can't see the fuse box in the basement 'cuz it's too dark. You can't turn on Emmett's UV light. You think maybe this will be a chance to go on-line and check your facebook pages because your computer has 3 hours of battery back up. Then you realize you can't connect to the internet without electricity. You wonder if there will be a power surge that will destroy your computer and tv and everything else that power surges can destroy.

After drinking the coffee I felt much better, then made my own coffee and spiked it with 1/2 and 1/2 and whiskey for medicinal reasons only. Later there was sun and warmth enough to work outside. I've got a really bad cold but working outside was what I've been wanting to do, so I tried not to push it, but actually got a lot accomplished. The front lawn got mowed - major accomplishment. The strawberries and some plants from my daughter's house got planted. The compost bin got stirred and there are a zillion zillion worms in it. Some of them got liberated into the strawberry pot salvaged from a neighbor's move. And most exciting - we made a clearing under the big fir tree for an elfin family to use for their summer house. They are friends of Mr. Beachy, of course. We support housing for all!

My fingers are dried out from working in the soil. And they are aching, too. So this is a good place for today's blog to end.

A Year Gone By

I know that a few of you have wondered whatever happened to Mr. Beachy. It's been one of those years that I hesitated telling you because for a while it all seemed so tragic. I hardly knew how to begin telling the story, and I was afraid if I started the words would spill out uncontrollably. It felt better to pretend it hadn't happened.

But Christmas morning I woke up to a glorious turn of events and now I must tell the story beginning at the beginning.

You may remember that Mr. Beachy took his daughter, Peaches, and her daughter, Soon, to China for a visit with relatives and friends. He enjoyed showing off his grandchild. Peaches enjoyed see her ancestors' home. She was so young when they left China that she had only vague memories of her own grandparents' gardens. They were excited to tell me about the trip and how much things had changed in China over the years. I was very happy to have them back. We spent evenings exchanging stories of our time apart, and then began to pour over seed catalogs to plan my summer garden. Mr. Beachy had many new ideas he wanted to try out.

It was one of those early days at the beginning of spring when the ground is soft enough to work and not too saturated with rain. Mr. Beachy started digging. Now I'm not sure what was going through his mind, but the more he dug, the more he wanted to dig. He would take only short breaks for water and he wouldn't let me come outside. He said it would be better if I waited to see the results and he did not want me interfering with his garden ideas. Well, I wasn't quite sure what his plan was and I had a squirmy feeling it wasn't something that was going to match my own garden plan. But I let him be because it was just so nice to have the family back home again.

What started off as a very pleasant activity soon turned into what Fireling would call a full blown manic episode. Mr. Beachy would dash into the house tracking dirt into the kitchen, drink a glass of water, then be off again. The first night he came in, cleaned up, and I think had a good night's sleep. But he was up and at 'em early the next morning. I would call out to the backyard to remind him to take a break and sometimes I had to call out 2 or 3 times to get him to come in. I had a hunch that he was up to something I'd rather not know about. And at one point I started to go out to take him some water. As soon as he heard the back door creak he was at the door with a delirious scowl on his face. "No sir. You no come out yet. Too dangerous for lady. You will be surprised and happy happy."

It occurred to me that he was staying outside digging in the garden later and later each evening and getting up earlier and earlier. At some point I realized that he had dug straight through the night and was so consumed with the garden that he hadn't even changed his clothes. Peaches agreed we had to take some action here. Apparently she had no idea what he was up to either. One night as he came in covered in mud and tracking it all across the kitchen to the sink to fill his water bottle, we both pounced on him and told him he had to take a shower and relinquish his clothes until they were washed. I was afraid all that mud would clog my drains! And I was just glad that Soon was asleep and didn't witness this confrontation.

While Mr. Beachy was in the shower, Peaches and I took the flashlight and headed outdoors to see what he'd been up to. We figured since we had taken his clothes he wouldn't leave the bathroom and be able to catch us spoiling his surprise. Well, we were surprised. No doubt about it. What we found was a hole about 15 feet in diameter and so deep the flashlight couldn't shine on the bottom. All the displaced dirt was heaped in a pile that covered the back driveway and was so huge that I could barely see the tip of the fir tree. I wanted to cry. For Peaches sake I didn't. I remember thinking it was a good thing we were looking at the hole in the ground at night because we really weren't able to see very well.

Quickly Peaches and I devised a plan of action. She would start cooking Mr. Beachy's favorite meal and I would get down the bottle of whiskey. We pushed a table in front of the backdoor and set it with candle light for a nice meal. We heard the shower go off and quickly passed clean pajamas through the door. We knew he wouldn't wear pajamas while working in the garden. There was quite a bit of grumbling coming from the bathroom, but we ignored it. He'd have to put on these clothes to come out. When he did, we grabbed a chair and started serving. The whiskey, then the food, then more whiskey. We feigned excitement and anticipation as we begged him to tell us how the garden was coming along. He finally relaxed and gave in.

And the plan he had! There was now no going back on it. He was determined. He had enjoyed the trip to China so much and had been impressed by their new technology and especially their bullet trains. He felt that Soon should grow up in China among her relatives and absorb the culture of her people. But he knew he would miss Missy Peachy and Soon far too much to be so far away. And he also knew that his heart was here working in my garden. So he had devised a plan to dig to China and once there, have the authorities install a vertical bullet train that could carry him back and forth at a very rapid pace. Why he could garden here in the morning and help Soon with her homework in China, then be back by bedtime. "Much work now delivers great prize in end."

Mr. Beachy had lost his mind.

We were at a loss to know how to handle this situation. He was so happy. The warm meal and 3 glassed of whiskey didn't slow him down. He fell asleep in the chair, but I heard him before the crack of dawn finding his overalls and boots and heading out to the hole. Well, we weren't allowed to call it a hole. We had to speak of it as "The Esteemed Tunnel Passage to Asia" or the ETPA for short.

He wasn't going to stop. He was convinced he could do it. He told me it wasn't something he undertook on an impulse; the dig had been brewing for quite some time and furthermore, he had researched the entire geography and technology of the plan before that first spring morning when he picked up the shovel. Peaches decided to take Soon and travel to China to wait for Mr. Beachy on the other end. I never had the heart to tell her I didn't think this was going to work. I spent days sitting inside and wishing I knew how to stop this craziness. Then I gave up. I started working in the front yard and side yard and only ventured to the back occasionally.

Sometimes Mr. Beachy would pack a lunch and be gone for days. It was a wonder that the shovel never broke. Then one day I went out and the hole had caved in. It took hours, but I finally reached Peaches by phone to tell her about it. We were both sure that Mr. Beachy had died in an avalanche of rocks and soil somewhere near the center of the earth. It was many days before I could quit crying and every time Peaches and I talked by phone she would be sobbing so much she'd forget to speak English.

You can see why I couldn't write about poor Mr. Beachy's demise. After a while I knew he wasn't coming back. And once it started raining, the hole became a huge muddy mess. I thought about it for a long time, then finally called a landscaping crew to come fill the hole in. By this time the dirt was piled so high that I felt like my house was surrounded by mountains. No way could I see my neighbors. And I was afraid the rain would cause a slide that would block the alley. That would involve the City coming out with a complaint and a fine. So I hired this crew and tried my best to think of Mr. Beachy dying a happy death fulfilling his dream.

After a while Peaches fell in love with a man who owns a tea plantation in the higher altitude outside the city. His name is Ahhavee Anplums. That's how I think it's spelled. It sounds like "Harvey" when Peaches talks about him. The wedding was lovely. She sent pictures. She knew her father would be pleased that she and Soon had a place secure in the world surrounded by beautiful gardens and the aroma of tender tea leaves. All the relatives approved. Now instead of Peachy Beachy, her name is Peaches Anplums. And Soon attends a little school nearby with all the children whose parents worked on the plantation.

One day in mid November I received a call from Peaches. The line was so crackly and she was talking so quickly that I could barely make out what she was saying. At first I thought she was calling to say she was pregnant. When I finally got her to slow down, she told the most amazing story. Apparently, unbeknown to either of us, Mr. Beachy had not died in that avalanche. It had been very dangerous, but he had escaped the rain of heavy boulders and been able to continue digging. He wasn't able to eat for ages and became quite weak, but there was enough spring water trickling down in little streams to keep him from dehydration. He pushed on and continued digging. At one point he heard voices and thought he was a goner and almost gave up. But it turned out that people on the other side of the soil heard vibrations from his shovel and started digging from their end to find out what was making the noise. With their help he emerged into the fresh morning air after days and weeks underground. He must have been a sight.

The people who found him were very kind. They showed him the best of hospitality. They took him immediately into their home. Mr. Beachy seldom has trouble with speech, but he realized right away that the dialect being spoken was a little tricky for him to make communication easy. It turns out that his geographical calculations were off by several thousand miles and he had ended up in Mongolia. His new friends provided him with warm clothes. (He said his old ones were so soiled that they wouldn't even burn when they were thrown into the fire. They just melted like a plastic bag and left a hard piece of black goo sitting in the pit.) The sunlight reflecting off the vast terrain of snow covered plains was very hard on his adjusting eyes. A cousin was sent to buy sunglasses at the nearest store. Turns out the store was in a village two weeks travel away. So Mr. Beachy enjoyed a much needed month of rest in the shelter of his finders home.

The cousin was instructed to call Peaches from the village store, but once again the dialect was a barrier and Peaches couldn't understand at all what was being said. So it was mid-November when Mr. Beachy showed up on Peaches' doorstep unannounced. He had traveled on horseback, scooter, rail, and bus to finally reach the ancestors' home place. Quite a parade of relatives and neighbors escorted him from the family home to the tea plantation. The children were just leaving school at the bottom of the hill when the group leading the traveller approached. Soon recognised her grandfather immediately. She was bubbling with excitement and wearing out her grandpa's ears as she led him to meet her new father and reunite with his beloved daughter. Peaches began sobbing again as she told the story.

Later that week Mr. Beachy called me. We had a better connection. He asked if he could come again to live at my house. He sheepishly promised to never dig a big hole like that again and to work together planning the garden. When I said yes, he said he knew that all would work out in the end. And Christmas morning he arrived, a brand new shovel wrapped as a gift for me. You know, he won't be able to take a bullet train to see his family, but I'm sure he'll find a way to visit and he seems so very happy right now asleep in the living room chair with Waylon on his lap.

It's just - we're grumpy.

Faithful readers will notice that the recent Fairy Garden entries have been deleted. This is due to honesty issues. Mr. Beachy had been holed up in his room for several days and I finally approached him to ask what was the matter. He...was...grumpy. He explained ever so curmudgeonly that this blog was supposed to be OURS. Not some silly fairy tale. And I considered his comments and especially his grumpy way of showing his feelings, and admitted to him that he was right. After promising him that I would delete said entries, I heard him outside in the garden. Chilly and damp as it was, I could hear him whistling and I know all will be better for it.

The Stealth Hunter Has Arrived

There's a new addition to our family. I know it hasn't been so long since hammy died, and it's not that we don't miss her....but the opportunity arose to add a baby veiled chameleon to our household. I could watch this guy all day. He is the kind of chameleon with mitten-like feet and eyes that move in all directions, being able to see in front and behind himself at the same time.

He is a slow mover as far as lizards go, which makes him perfect for SIE to hold. And what a great way to get SIE to wash his hands! I told him he should wash them before and after holding him. He went on to say it was because of the oils in our skin; maybe he heard that at school. This is a five year old who knows everything.

We are having some trouble with names. "Cammy" was a natural...in homor of Hammy, of course. But I was going for something a little more sophisticated. Hapapapa suggested "Mosie", because he just mosies along. I jumped to "Moses", which caught the evil eye glare of Hapapapa, who corrected me: "Mosie". He does that sometimes thinking he can manage me. hah! I personally think he's a "Noah" rather than a "Moses". That's just my personal take on him. Yesterday, we named him "Scout" because of his stealthy hunting habits. Also I thought it would be fun to name all my future pets after characters in To Kill a MockingbirdGet the subconcious connection to HarperLee? We'll see if this name sticks.

This new addition regretably has made me learn about cricket keeping. He's tiny, but can chow down more than 8 crickets a day! Now I have a very nice cricket habitat set up in the mud room. Plus about a half dozen loose crickets jumping around my house. How do you catch a cricket? I invented this technique myself, although others must have thought of it before me: You put the cardboard from an empty paper towel roll into their cage. The crickets crawl in to sleep. You easily reach in and cover both ends of the roll and take it to the Death Star and let those prisoners loose. Sometimes there aren't enough crickets sleeping in the roll, so you gently herd them into a corner with the roll covered at your end, and they hop and scurry and push and shove and run inside it thinking they are escaping, only to face the flying tongue of the Stealth Hunter.

The Flood of 2009

Well, I know it will be a great year. SIE and I drove to the Wildlife Refuge up near the farm and we got to see some sandhill cranes (my favorite besides the coyotes), a few great blue herons, a huge flock of black birds migrating somewhere, lots of swans, a couple Nutria and several ducks and grebes, and one train! It was SIE's first visit with me and he did real well. He decided I should use the binoculars and he would take photos. I love that digital camera!

I made pierogies from scratch - Yum! And Hapapapa made pork and sauerkraut. No formal meal, just nibbling all day. Kaliedoscope girl had to work.

So after a nice new year's day I was snuggled down falling asleep when the furnace clicked on sounding weird. I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep well unless I checked on it. I found a bunch of water flooding the basement. The fire department came to my rescue and by the time they got here the water was above their boot tops and rising. They used two of their big pumps to fight the water, which was broiling in from city drain backups and saturated ground. One of the neighbors came by and told me this happened every year and we both can't believe that wasn't disclosed when I bought the house. The old owner told me the basement was "moist" and needed some work.....but he didn't say it "floods"!!!

The firemen said the water would be up to 6 ft. by morning and waited until they knew that Hapapapa was bringing over a rented sump pump (My hero). Then it was a matter of waking up every two hours to turn it on and check the water level. I think Mr. Beachy had been drinking because he got into his little kayak and circled the basement singing pirate songs, which sound funny sung with a Chinese accent.

The water started going down the drain in the morning and I was able to get some plumbers out to plan what we should do. They will begin some major back-up valve drain work on Monday. We have snow on the ground again and predictions of 7 days of rain starting Monday so I will be happy not to have the flood worry too much longer. By 2pm I was able to get the furnace on again (by myself! amazing!) And thanks to Kaliedoscope Girl's frequent comforting phone calls, I am able to relax.

Slug Slime

When I lived on the farm there would occasionally be a shiny trail on the bathroom rug in the morning. I would pretend the fairies had come to visit. Of course I knew it was a trail of slug slime. It usually faded in an hour or two and I never saw the slug so it never annoyed me.

Now, for you who have known slugs from the midwest, you probably think of them as those little shell-less snail things that are garden pests. We have those here, too. But, as many other things West of the Rocky Mountains, we have slugs as big as Paul Bunyan's Babe. I first heard of big slugs from kaliedoscope girl who attended the University of California at Santa Cruz. Their school mascot is a smiling banana slug. Since living out here I have seen some biggish slugs although I've never actually seen a bright yellow smiling banana slug. The ones I've seen have been light brown and I only know they are banana slugs because they have a hole for a nose on the side of their heads. The first enormous slug I ever saw was one day walking in the woods near the farm. I came upon a Rufous Garden Slug. I can't describe my horror. It was on a clump of autumn leaves and the contrast between the yellow-orange of the leaves and the big, black, slimy creature made me think for a second of lynchings and castration. It sent the scariest shiver up my back. My nature book says they are 2 inches long, but this guy was at least 2 inches wide and maybe 6 long.

This all brings me round to the "Fairy Trail" I've noticed near Waylon's bowl since we've been here. I put Waylon's food up on a ledge in the mud room. It's a great ledge that is next to the kitchen door and you have to pass it to get to the basement stairs. It's perfect for resting the laundry basket on as you get ready to go downstairs to do the wash. Perfect also for keeping cat food out of the dogs' reach. Waylon likes to spread his food around so I have an old terry cloth towel that I put under the bowls. Shortly after Waylon arrived, I noticed a fairy trail on the towel one morning. It isn't there every morning, but often enough that I decided to investigate and see if I could find those fairies. This proved to be quite a mystery. The trail only glistens on the terry cloth. I could find a few shiny sprinkles on the basement steps and on the rug near the washing machine, but no trail. The cat bowl ledge is in location that I can't imagine a slug being able to reach. But, you know, fairies can be unpredictable and seriously secretive beings.

WELL......one night I was letting Blue out to pee and usually I don't turn on the light, but for some reason I did. The trail maker was there! Right up there nibbling on cat food crumbs. He is a Leopard Slug. Here's how the Nature book describes him:

LEOPARD SLUG Limax maximus Gastropod Class Body cylindrical, leathery, pale gray or brownish; above spotted and striped. Eyes on long stalks. A garden pest imported from Europe. Length: 4 inches Habitat: Gardens and moist woodlands. Range: Chiefly west of the Cascades.

I think he's longer than 4 inches. My first impulse is to squish all slugs. But one this big I cannot squish. My next thought is to scoop him up and take him across the street. But I figure any little critter who can slither up onto this ledge and survive on cat food crumbs (instead of my garden) has earned the right to join the family. I still can't figure out where he lives. There are lots of tiny holes and I've looked up and down the stairs to the basement, but this remains a mystery for now. Stay tuned....his photo is coming.

The Beachys are Back!

Yay! Mr. Beachy, Peaches, and Soon are back from their l-o-n-g trip to China. They arrived last night all grumpy and tired out, but very happy to be home. They visited every relative in the Beachy extended family. Peaches said she didn't get to hold Soon for more than a few minutes the entire trip. Everyone thought she was the perfect baby. How could they not? Mr. Beachy is glad to be back in time to cook Thanksgiving dinner. He tells me everyone cooked for them while they were gone and they never ate so much food in all their lives. But they've been en route for three days and are happy I filled their fridge with their favorite American foods.

Early this morning Mr. Beachy was outside inspecting the yard and scolding, scolding, scolding me in his old familiar way about things I missed caring for in the garden. The weather has been cold and rainy, but that is no excuse. If Soon hadn't started fussing he would have given me an earfull! Peaches was all cheerful this morning, laughing that Soon couldn't let her take a shower without such a fuss. "Want to be with mama all the time! So many people in China; now all alone in big house. New colors, new sounds. Good while gone, now naughty. Baby Soon remember old house and be happy soon."

It's really great to have them back all safe and sound. I confess I was a little worried that they might decide to stay in China. Mr. Beachy knew I'd been thinking that might happen. He scoffed at me and muttered, "No, no. Chinese people all good with gardens. I go where needed most."

Cry Out With Joy To The Lord, All The Earth

That's the first line of psalm 100. It crosses my mind every morning and it really makes me happy to think of all of creation praising the Lord in its own way. Even when it's hot, like it has been here for the last couple days. HOT! So hot that I can only do a little bit of stuff before I want to lie down and take a nap. Blue and Waylon apparently feel the same way. Right now Blue is asleep under my desk and Waylon is outside sleeping under a bush.

It's been so hot that poor Hammy collapsed on the floor of her cage and I thought she'd breathed her last...but she's OK today. I don't know what I'd do if she died; she's such a sweet little hamster.

SIE is on vacation this week so his mom, Kaliedoscope Girl, and I are heading off to see the coast tomorrow. She just had her birthday - on a day in Portland that was as hot as the day she was born in Chicago. Half the guests were under age 5 and spent the party in the backyard seeing how wet they could get - water balloons, squirt guns, and wading pool provided - plus one crazy Hapapapa who kept egging them on. "Wet" = the only way to keep cool. SIE and I made her a lamb cake and the whipped cream gently rolled down the lamb melting into sliced strawberries. Someone called it a camel cake, I think because a naked lamb looks sort of like a camel, but maybe because only a camel could make it through the heat to a party.

I've been working on one of my projects and I'm not sure if I've already told you all about it. I had a kitchen table made to fit the spot in my kitchen that looks like a dining spot. It's made from reclaimed wood and looks like a "Little House in the Prairie" table. Hapapapa said it looks like a table Jesus would make. I've been wanting to stain it and gotten several opinions from people about how to and how not to go about it. Every idea seemed like a little more expense and too much troulbe driving around to look for supplies. So I finally decided to use my old artist's ingenuity. I had some burnt sienna oil paint, a jar of linseed oil, and a hunk of bees wax already in my art supplies. So last week I mixed the oils together and stained the table soaking in the aroma which reminds me of growing up. My mom used to oil paint and she'd put the brushes in her mouth to make the hairs form a point - artists do that. I always thought of her kisses as a combination of lipstick, coffee, and oil paint. It took a couple days for the table to dry - yes, even in this heat! Then I melted the bees wax (my only expense - a $2.00 enamel stove-top pan from the thrift shop) and started painting it onto the table. The 1st area go too thick, so I got out my hair dryer and was able to smooth the extra wax over to a bare spot. Then with an old cloth and the hair dryer, I was able to finish the table top. I love that the wax was made by bees and not petroleum. For some reason I can't figure out, it is very soothing to me to work the wax into the wood. H-mmm?

Next is to finish recovering the sofa and making curtains and my little house will look good! And before long the chilly, wet days of Portland winter will be upon us.

House Tour

Think: Bill Clinton gives a tour of the White House Christmas decor as "first man." And here is a brief tour of our new home seven weeks after moving in. We're still unpacking.
It's in an old neighborhood. The engraved street names don't always match the street signs. A room with a view - out the front window I can see across to the church which is surrounded by old flowering trees. Right across the street is a window to the daily mass chapel. The blessed sacrement is right by this window. I think it is closer than if I stood in the way back at St. Boniface and looked at the tabernacle. A living room that inspires art. The view out my bedroom window. A sleek and long kitchen waiting for a kitchen table. Books! Two of the 3 bookcases I've built since moving here. Four Peruvian angels gracing the front room wall.

In Which Waylon Comes to Stay

About nine years ago Kaliedoscope girl brought two kittens to live with her in Portland. They were brothers. She named them Merle and Waylon, after Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings. Merle was gray with white markings and had long hair. Waylon was white with gray markings and had short hair. About 6 years ago, Merle met his demise. We think it was an eagle attack. All that was ever found was a tuft of gray hair in the driveway.Waylon lived on and took command of the street. You would often see him making his rounds from yard to yard, sometimes sunning on car roofs, often pooping in other people's flowerbeds. Of late he had become a pest. Very vocal and nagging a sweet, hard-working nurse on her return home after a 12 hour shift. Very demanding about the kind of food he's fed. And peeing on Hapapapa's laundry one-too-many times.

So the noble cat has come to live at grandma's house. At this moment he is asleep behind my head on the back of the couch. Blue is curled up asleep beside me. I think each cat embodies the spirit of all cats. So I feel the presence of all the felines I've ever known - Blackie, Tiger and Tammy, Mournful Kitter-Kat, Phoebe, Rosetree, Memphis, Brenda, Smokey, Sparrow, Sparrow's four kittens, Misty, and "my little husband" Perdinkle. It's very calm and all is well.

Getting It Together

I'm really behind in writing and feeling really wiped out right now. But I keep thinking of you all and want to catch you up on all that's going on here.

Nesting: It's definitely harder to build your own nest than it is to do the nesting required when you return home from a few days away (see entry from Nov. 9) I think it has to do with books! It's been since Orchard Street that I had a real bookshelf. I've put my books in sideways milk crates for ages now. And somehow I've known right where each book is and never thought about this before. Moving here I decided to get a real bookshelf and use the milk crates in the basement or garage or somewhere. After looking around I bought a build-it-yourself bookcase. SIE helped me. It has become more of a bedroom catch all than a proper bookcase. My new bed takes up too much room to have a bed side table, so this is substituting. I tried moving it out of the bedroom, but had to move it back after a few days....so I got another buildityourself of a little different style. I really tried to put my books in it, but couldn't figure out where to put what. Books:See, it's not even that I have a whole lot of books. I think they fit into only five catagories - nursing texts, religious, children's, nature and garden guides, and the current novels I'm working on.

So today I drove back to the store and bought two large b-i-y shelves. They were heavy. I don't think I'm old, but they were heavy enough to wipe me out after bringing them in the house and building only one. At least now I'm certain I'll have enough room for them and once I get the books on the shelves I'll be able to clear my desk and I think the major nesting stress will be over. Yay!

Sick kids:SIE got sick last week. He went to his first gymnastics class, then came over to my house and fell asleep. He hardly ever takes a nap; that was a clue. It seemed to be a 24 hour flu. Then his momma got it, then his papa. Then on Easter there was a dramatic relapse which involved throwing up on one of the dogs as dinner was put on the table. Kaliedoscope girl worked all weekend, then had a relapse on her day off. So far, I've been able to help out and stay germ-free. Today, getting tired while building the shelves, I started feeling a little nervous that the plague may be coming. But after resting I feel better.

City vs Farm: It definitely is an advantage being in the city now. Gas prices are up to $3.45/gal and I've only had to get one fill up this month. That's as opposed to at least once and often twice per week when I was driving up to the farm. The weather here is surely milder, even though it's been chilly. I'm almost certain there's snow on the ground up there. And here, the flowering trees are blooming despite the chill. The Japanese Pavilion downtown is full of cherry blossoms. I can see them from the bridge. They are glorious. I hope to get down and walk among them before they start to fall - even then it will be nice.

Critters and Birds:Every day I look out the window expecting to see a deer. I'm trying to appreciate all the urban critters. So far there are squirrels, a long-haired black and white cat who looks like Perdinkle, and tonight I saw a dark Siamese, like Misty. The birds are mostly crows, with a few sea gulls,and a small flock of starlings. There's a resident gray's jay, who got upset and squaked a lot when we moved things in the yard or let Blue out. He seems to be OK with us now. I'll take his picture soon. He likes to sit on the fence post and watch us. Outside my bedroom window there's a willowy bush. It might be some kind of mulberry. There's little dried up seeds that look like mulberries. It's real frilly and pretty. There's a pair of sparrows living in it or near it. I'll figure out what type of sparrow they are - they're a little different. The female has a tail that perks like a wren's, and one of them can sing like a cantor.

The night sky is a lot different here that on the farm. It always looks like a full moon's out there. It never gets very dark, but we can see stars. And the night there was a full moon, it cast a light shadow on the kitchen floor.

Sounds:There are trains. When I was growing up in Cleveland I loved listening to the trains and the fog horns on the lake at night. They had a soft lulling sound. The trains here are loud and long and frequent. I had no idea there were so many trains. I've tried to count them all, but loose count around noon with at least eight. The tracks are just a few blocks from here and I guess since the trains cross residential streets they have to blow a warning. I wonder if they'll become like the sirens in OTR and just become part of my background noise.

The Beachysare well. Soon is keeping them busy. But they're all quite happy. No problem nesting for them!

Like a Whale Breaching The Ocean Surface

I feel like a huge gray whale coming up for air. Or maybe like a giant sea turtle. It's been so long since I wrote. The move has been a bit more overwhelming than I know how to handle. Especially the furnishing part. Wouldn't you know it. Something I've often dreamed about - the chance to furnish a home - is very intimidating. I know it will all come together, but it just seems so much simpler to live with less.

I can only shop for a little bit before my mind gets too full of colors and sizes and prices. Then I think something crazy must happen in my spacial perception. I've had to change my ideas around a bunch

But, ta da, I now have two "new" couches! One is a new soft love-seat that will convert to a guest bed. Blue likes it. I'll have to cover its seat so she doesn't mark it up! I sat there this morning to say my prayers and she curled up next to me to have her bellie rubbed, and I realized her feet were still wet from outdoors. (She still hasn't gotten the knack of wiping her feet and closing the door behind her!)

The other couch, from the same warehouse, cost $25.00! It looks like the kind of big, plastic covered sofa you'd find in a doctor's office or nursing home. The guys that delivered it think it was from a hotel lobby. Except for it's cover, it's in really good condition. While I was measuring it so I can buy fabric to make a cover, I found a key and a diamond ring! It's a very tiny diamond - smaller than the ones my girls wore when their noses were pierced! The band is my ring size and looks gold. I can't read the inscription inside. Maybe it's real. Anyway, what a fun surprise.

Besides "moving in" I've spent a couple occassions babysitting for SIE and one of his classmates. Mr. Beachy remarked that we should call our new house "The Gramada Inn". The children had a great time converting a large refrigerator box into a beauteous cardboard house complete with chimney. That's incase Santa or The Big Bad Wolf come along, I'm told.

Luckily, I came up for air on such a wonderful day. The weather is blustery and grey, very much like Ireland. I was able to locate my copy of "The Confessions of St. Patrick" among my books that are still packed in milk crates. I remembered his prayer when I awoke this morning and give it to you *******

I rise today in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Christ be with me.
Christ before me.
Christ Behind me.
Christ above me.
Christ below me.
Christ on my right.
Christ on my left.
Christ within me, be my shield.

A Moment to Write

It's strange you can forget how disorienting it is to move! Where to put everything! And I thought I didn't have that much. Anyway, I just wanted to say, I'm plugging away at getting things arranged. And I have a new bed! Pretty cool. I've been sleeping on the floor (on a futon) for so long, I'm afraid I'll fall out! But it's very pretty and large enough to snuggle with SIE and Blue, too. I've already lost the keys to the garage, which is where I moved all my tools. I knew that I used the tool cabinet a lot, but now I know how much! As soon as I can break the locks, that tool cabinet is coming inside. It's supposed to be warmer soon, so I'm off today to buy a lawn mower. The rasberry "weeds" are growing like crazy between the garage and the fence....if they aren't cut back soon, I'll have to wait till next year. Haven't seen the Beachy's since the move. I hope they didn't get locked in the garage! I'll write again when my home internet is up. Love to you all.

More Details

Still looking for that fat lady, but it looks like this house might happen. It sure is a lot of work - all the negotiating and inspections, etc. Yesterday I was over therer while the electrician and sewer scope guy were there. I sketched out the floor plan. Doing that reminded me of my fireling who always sketches out her moves. I've always thought it was good that I didn't have a house to furnish and decorate, because it would occupy so much of my time. And.....yes....I already bought a chair for this yellow house. I will really have to restrict myself.

It is a tiny yellow house across the street from a church that I go to every once in a while. The church happens to be one that I went to one long ago Christmas eve when I was visiting kaliegirl. I remember the sermon was about Harry Potter....but can't remember what the context was! Anyway I am so excited about being that close to a church so I can go to daily mass again. Masses are few and far between out here in the wilderness. I will stay a parishioner of the Downtown Chapel at least for now.

The neighborhood is laid out like Wash DC with the quilt-like angles leading up to turn-abouts. There's a large rose garden in the middle and four smaller ones at north, east, west, and south. The south one is just a block from me. And there's an off-leash dog park that isn't too far to walk....Blue will have some new friends!

One reason I like this house is because it is still very simple and farm-house looking. The kitchen has old cupboards painted white and a couple built in shelves that don't show up in the picture. It looks bright, too, which is sometimes rare in a Portland house. The living room floor is beautiful wood and it has an old "fake" fireplace that the electrician says can be repaired. I'm hoping to find a set of electric logs like my friend sweetfairybee has in her home. There are 2 bedrooms...I think I'll fix up the guest room so it makes a cozy sitting space for reading when visitors aren't here. And there's a mud room at the back of the house that really looks old fashioned. The little garage will one day become a very sweet art studio and green house. It has walls and ceiling that are still unfinished and very pretty red (cedar?) wood. I could live in it!

I'm sure that fat lady's somewhere.......

Over Hill, Over Dale, As We Hit the Dusty Trail and The Caisons Go Rolling Along

(there's a ferocious domestic cat in this tree)

Yes it's true.....Miss Ingu and Blue are moving. I guess it's not a done deal until the Fat Lady sings and I haven't even met her yet. But Miss Ingu has signed her name to documents which imply she is buying her first home! It is a tiny but solid yellow house in a neighborhood with tree-lined streets, a church across the street, and a Portland grocery store just a skip away. There's a very nice grade school two blocks from it in case SIE would like to attend. And where the streets come together there are rose gardens that fill the round-abouts. I think it will be the quintessential grandma's house. And I intend to keep it very proper so that guests will feel welcome and enjoy their visits. We'll have tea and apple pie always on hand.

Blue and I went for a walk today to discuss this with Mr. Beachy. I was very worried that he'd take this with some hurt feelings. But he and his daughter were delighted to hear the news! His poor house under the blackberry hedge has been almost smushed from the heavy rains and the ice has made it quite uncomfortable. Straight away he made plans to accompany us on our move. I am sure he will find a wonderful spot. The yellow house has a very nice backyard and a garage that I plan on turning into an art studio/garden house. I am sure Mr. Beachy and Peachy will find a wonderful spot to build their new place. If only we can talk a few of the birds out here into joining us and maybe take a garter snake or two, it's possible we won't be too homesick.

Each walk we've taken for the last few days has been filled with soaking in God's awesome creation. I'm going to move a bed up against the front window to compensate Blue for the loss of her fields. She's never been able to look outside and watch the sounds and smells go past. Kaleidoscope girl thinks that as long as Blue and I are together that she'll be a happy dog. Maybe she'll finally learn to walk on a leash!

Well, I'm off now to find that fat lady.