Thursday Night Update

Bob and I went up to Enumclaw today to visit with his youngest daughter and her two little one.  Her husband is a fireman and he was on duty today, so we didn't get to see him.  Anyway, we had a great visit with June, Lance (he was 3 this last April) and little Marin Rose, who was born June 21st.

PaPa Bob got lots of wrestling in with Lance...he loves to wrestle...even with his great grandma.  And I read him a book and he leaned on me from time to time to watch TV. He's a darling little boy, with a beautiful smile and I love his non-stop chattering.  He never did get his nap, so I'm sure June had one tired boy when we left there about 6pm. 

Marin on the other hand, slept on and off while we were there.  Just recently she's decided she doesn't want anyone to hold her except her mom or dad...so we each held her about 2 minutes awake, before she'd start to cry.  I held her once for quite awhile, while June fixed Lance something to eat but she was asleep.  When June was holding her, she just cooed and gurgled and smiled....it was so cute.  But, once she was away from mom, that bottom lip came out and she would pucker up.

When we left there, we were continually amazed at the cloud formations.  We'd see blue sky with big fluffy clouds on the left and dark, angry storm clouds on the right. And then a beautiful rainbow and just beyond that the tip of Mt Rainier sticking out of a cloud bank all around the bottom of it.  We stopped at the Wal Mart in the town of Bonney Lake and Bob went in to get a few things.  My left foot is still killing me, so I waited in the car.  The clouds behindthe Wal Mart were so sinister looking and then I looked over to the west and there's this beautiful, brilliant sunset, surrounded by heavy, dark clouds.  Mother Nature really put on a show for us this evening.

Gabi thanks all of you for the birthday greetings...poor little girl was home all alone today.  Oh well, I left the TV on and she knows how to change the channel by stepping on the remote, so I'm sure she had a good time.

Hope everyone had a good day...I'm off down the hall with my sore foot, my book and my kitty.   Linda

GABI LIN

It was two years ago today that this dear little one came to live with me.  It was determined that she was about two years old so I have chosen October 4th as her birthday, at least a day of new beginnings for her. Of course no one (but her & she's not talking) knows exactly when she was born.  Most of you know Gabi's story so please bear with me as I tell it again on this special day.

Gabi (the name a co-worker and I gave her) was found by the Humane Society on the streets of Seattle in August of 2005.  She was starving, matted, flea ridden...a real mess.  After an initial examination to see if she was microchipped (she wasn't), she was taken to a lady in the Seattle area who raises and fosters Persians and Exotic Shorthairs.  Gabi by the way is an Exotic,  because she has short hair unlike a Persian who is long haired.  Anyway, the next couple months she was cleaned up, examined by a vet, vaccinated, and started on the road to recovery.

The end of September, a co-worker of mine had started looking for an Exotic kitten.  She knew this lady as she had talked to her before about Exotics.  So she gave her a call to see if she had any Exotics ready to be adopted.  The lady didn't have any kittens but she told my friend about the little two year old, who'd been rescued and was ready to go to a permanent home.  She emailed some pictures to my friend, who emailed them to me and for me it was "love at first sight!"  She decided she'd take her and I kept saying well if it doesn't work out, I want her.  Meanwhile we were going over names, my friend (and myself ) both liked names that have meaning.  We kept coming back to the name "Gabi" because in Hebrew it means "God is My Strength."  After hearing the story of her survival, we both felt "Gabi" was a fitting name..   So my friend picked her up and took her home.  The vet had said that Gabi should have dry food available at all times and be fed canned food at least twice a day, because she wasso thin.  (She still only weighs 4lbs 8 oz and my vet would like to see her between 5 & 6 pounds)  Well, my friend only feeds dry food twice a day, she does not leave it out for her cats...so after a day or so she could see she had an impossible situation going.  Trying to feed two cats, two different ways...it was not going to work.  She came to work the morning of October 4, 2005 and said "I can't do this! Would you like to have this cat?"  OH YA !!!  I took an extended lunch, went to Petsmart, got a carrier, cat food, litter, etc. and that afternoon my co-worker left early, took my carrier, went to her house & got Gabi and brought her to me.  She came home with me that night and immediately settled into her new home. 

It's only been two years...but I feel like it's been forever.  She's such a sweet girl, especially at night when she jumps up on my bed and curls up next to me while I read.  She leans her little head on my arm and purrs away, sometime stretching out a front paw to my arm.  Once I turn out the light, she gets up and goes down and lays on her blanket at the end of my bed.  When I wake up in the morning...there she is...sitting there, looking at me...waiting for me to get up and give her her breakfast.  However, if I sleep too long, she's up walking around me, gently pawing my arm or head with her little white paw.  Making her little throaty noises which mean "mom get your _____ out of bed and feed me." 

Some may feel it's silly to go on and on about a cat...but she's such a dear little girl.  I can't help but love her.  Before she came along, I thought Persians were quite unattractive, their smooched faces did nothing for me.  But once you have one in your house...and you get to know their sweet personalities and dispositions, all those feelings fade away. 

So Happy 4th Birthday little Gabi Lin....I love you ! May we have many more happy years together.

Wednesday Update

I met my friend Judy at Steamer's, a waterfront cafe here in my home town.  I love this place. And I've taken journal pictures there before.   It's right down on the water, with a great view of the new and old Narrows Bridges.  There are tracks between the cafe and the parking lot, where trains, both freight and passenger go by on a regular basis. There's a lovely beach just down below Steamer's where I used to take my grand kids when they were little and a great paved walkway, to walk dogs or take a leisurely stroll.  I was concerned about the weather...but while we were there, the rain stayed away.  This was her "birthday" lunch from me...her birthday was on September 16th but this was the first opportunity we had to get together.

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From there I went to Trader Joes, to stock up on a few things and then on to the Toyota dealer to have the oil changed in my car.  When they were done, the Service guy came with a serious look on his face and told me of some things that need to be taken care of on my car.  I've never had much trouble with this car, it now has 97,700 miles on it...so I guess I shouldn't be too surprised, just disappointed as I don't have the $1,100.00 he is suggesting to fix all the trouble spots.  I keep having things happen that suggest I may have to get a part time job...the retirement money is just not stretching enough.

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From there I went to my nearby Fred Meyer store, to get milk and coffee creamer and then on home as the sky was getting blacker and blacker.  I could see rain coming down out of the black clouds off in the distance...but I made it home and as I took the last bit of stuff out of my car, heavy rain started pelting the carport and patio.  There was some thunder (one blast shook the house like an earthquake) but it seems to have subsided now.

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Those of you who have read my journal for sometime remember the account I gave of the shooting at the Tacoma Mall on Sunday, November 20, 2005.   The shooter, Dominick Maldonado wounded seven people, kidnapped four and frightened hundreds of others who fled the mall in fear for their lives. One of his victims, Dan McKown was shot three times at point blank range, leaving him partially paralyzed.  Maldonado was finally brought to trial and Tuesday the jury returned their verdict; GUILTY ! Convicted of 15 crimes including; first degree assault, guilty of attempted second-degree murder (in the case of Dan McCowan), guilty of second degree assault, guilty of first degree kidnapping (he held 4 people at gun point in a store)and guilty of first degree unlawful possession of a firearm.  His sentencing date has been set for November 2, 2007 and it's been said he could get as much as a hundred years sentence for the horrific things he did. He's only 22 years old now, so young...what a waste of a life.  Thankfully, even though Mr. McCowan is in a wheelchair for the rest of his life...no one died on that scary day in November 2005.

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There's snow falling in the mountains here in Washington state.  Stevens Pass saw enough snow fall today, for people to head up there with their kids and sleds.   The main pass (Snoqualmie) from my area over to eastern Washington is at 3,200 feet and they have not had any snowfall as yet.  But the snow level is falling so it's just a matter of time until the white stuff starts falling there, too.

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After I got home this afternoon, clumsy me tripped and I fell here in my living room.  I caught my left foot on the leg of the coffee table and I'm afraid I may have either sprained it badly or broken a bone just below the second toe (from my great toe).  It's extremely sore (ouch) and swelling.  I've got ice on it now and I took a couple Tylenol but so far...no relief.  I bet it will be black and blue tomorrow.   So, I'm going to get off here and go elevate it.  Until next time........Linda

How To Tell That You're Not Mom's Favorite.

Chocolate Saved My Life

Thanks to my friend Lynnette for this one;

 

A good piece of chocolate has about 200 calories. As I enjoy two servings per night, and a few more on weekends, I consume 3,500 calories of chocolate in a week, which equals one pound of weight per week.
 
Therefore; In the last 3 ½ years, I have had a chocolate caloric intake of about 180 pounds.
 
I weigh 165 pounds.
 
Without chocolate, I would have wasted away to nothing about three months ago!
 
I owe my life to chocolate.  And everybody said....AMEN !!!

Five Tips For Women

    Five tips for a woman....

1. It is important that a man helps you around the house and has a job.

2. It is important that a man makes you laugh.

3. It is important to find a man you can count on and doesn't lie to you.

4. It is important that a man loves you and spoils you.

5. It is important that these four men don't know each other.

Think Pink

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  All of us have been or will be...touched by this disease.  The survival rate for those with breast cancer has risen considerably over the years and while that sounds like good news....to me, good news would be no more breast cancer !  

During this month I want to encourage every woman to do a self breast exam and for those of you aged 40 or older, make an appointment with your doctor and ask for a mammogram.  If you find anything at least remotely suspicious, in a self exam.....please, please, please get into your doctor as soon as possible.  And men...breast cancer isn't just a women's disease, men can get it too.  If you feel any lumps or bumps that your concerned about...please make an appointment to be seen by your doctor.

I'm proud to be associated with Avon Products, who over the years has contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to breast cancer research.  They have many "pink" products available and the net proceeds are donated to the Avon Breast Cancer Crusade.  If you have an Avon representative in your area, contact her/him about purchasing some of these products.  You can also purchase "pink" products at several web sites, among them is the Breast Cancer Site Store.  I've found that many retail stores have "pink" products also.  Last spring I got a new hand sprinkler and some garden tools, all in pink, with the proceeds going for breast cancer research. 

I hope everyone out there in AOL Journal Land will buy something pink this month, where the proceeds will go towards the fight of breast cancer.  If there's nothing available in your area, how about writing out a check to Cancer Society for even $1.  Every little bit helps in this fight, a fight for the lives of those dear to us.