A Little Story of a Lady and Her Kitty

I got Eleanor in the 1990s, before some of the nieces and nephews were born.

This is me and Henry and Eleanor. They were litter mates. Henry died at age 10, and Eleanor was happy to be an only cat forever after.

She's always been so bright and inquisitive and incredibly attuned to me. When I don't feel well, she sits with me, sometimes ON me and makes me feel better.

In November we learned that she has cancer. That's ok. I was pretty firm in my conviction that we not try to treat it. Cancer in a young cat is sometimes operable. Two years ago, I asked the vet if she would clean Eleanor's teeth. No- she is too old for anesthesia. What would have happened is that we would have done x-rays to find what kind of cancer it was. Then maybe if she was healthier and younger, an excision or surgery to remove it. Sometimes cats get chemo, though it's much more common in dogs.

Not for us though. I thought maybe if we were lucky, we'd get another month. We got 2 1/2.

Since 2009, Eleanor has had prednisone twice a day to deal with her arthritis. It works fabulously, and she is easy to pill. Unless she's feeling frisky. Then she'll sort of cheek it and spit it out when she thinks you're not looking.  She also has a twice daily oral liquid metrocloprimide to help her pass food from her stomach through her duodenum.  In 2013 we added a thyroid medicine twice daily.

She's always been such a sweet kitty. A little mischievous. She sits in my lap when I type or behind me on the chair. At night she sleeps between my feet. The last few weeks, she's taken to climbing up on my pillow and purring at me to wake me up and feed or give her water in the middle of the night. I don't mind. Sometimes she doesn't want anything except to cuddle and her soft purring is comforting, even if her fuzzy face against mine sometimes keeps me awake. This is also how we get up in the morning, pets and cuddles and purring. Caturday means that G gets in on the act and we drink coffee and pet Eleanor as she sits between us, getting tummy rubs and snuggles. This is, I think, a good life for a cat.

Last night she crawled under the covers with me, like she used to when it was cold outside. When we woke up, she wasn't purring.

On Monday, she started to crash. Renal failure causes a disorientation, dehydration, confusion, and when I see it in her, it causes panic in me. Dr. Val, who owns Mt. Stuart Animal Hospital, gave me a bag of saline to administer to her once a day subcutaneously. Don't freak out; I've done this before. I used to work for a vet, I lived on a farm for a long time, and I'm resolute in giving my little kitty the best care ever. I cried every time I had to poke her with that large gauge needle.

Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, I came home and she was up and around and wanting to go outside in the sunshine. So yes, of course, we did.

We spent about an hour out there, enjoying the sunshine and unbelievably mild February weather. Both times she was exhausted and fell right to sleep on her heating pad.

Last night, I sat on the couch between Eleanor on her heating pad and G, and watched tv. I petted her for a long time and told her the story of her life. I told her about the Nevada SPCA and how we would never have declawed her anyway. I told her about how she used to love to climb as high as she could. I told her about our 4 cross country moves together, and how she tried to pop Gs head the first night he stayed with us. I told her about all of her friends and people who inquire about her on a regular basis and how sometimes she is referred to as Queen Eleanor. And I told her how much she has meant to me these last 18 years and that even though she's ten days from her 19th birthday, I still won't let her drive the car. And she purred quietly to herself while I scratched under her chin. These are old stories and she hears them all the time.

This morning, I held her and cried and cried. Also nothing new this week. I can't keep forcing her to stay alive when it's just for my emotional benefit. She hasn't been eating for awhile. Not really.

G and I took her to Dr. Val. She asked why El was all wet. My eyes may have leaked all over her.  G brought his iPad with him, of all things. I thought "why check your email at a time like this?", but of course I was wrong. He wanted to play her favorite jazz music, by John Coltrane. Val gave Eleanor a strong sedative and I put her on my shoulder like I always do. That's how we hang out, El on my shoulder hugging me.

After awhile, Val came in and give her the final shot of Beuthanasia. I held her the whole time and G was there, and crying too. She's the only cat he's been able to be around for an extended amount of time, since he's so allergic.  Val gave us a few minutes, and as the door shut, I couldn't hold back the sobbing anymore.

This is how I will always remember her, not for the myriad of pictures below but for this: She was the quiet reassurance that I am loved, needed, and valued. The physical comforting presence when I was sad and my little friend to talk to about nothing at all. She never wanted me to leave her alone. She was loved by people who met her, even if she didn't always enjoy strangers.

Pretty sure this is a C paper.

No Papparazzo!

"Grading time is over toots. Time for pets"

Best Pals

The house is too quiet today.

I took the day off, and G went back to work. I'll spend some time cleaning house, since she couldn't control her bladder at the end. And I suspect I will catch myself expecting to see her walk into a room, asking for pets or just wanting to be nearby.

This, then, is the price of loving a pet. As awful as it is to lose her, I would pay twice the emotional toll and be glad just to have had the privilege of knowing such a sweet soul.

We donated a bunch of food to the Kittitas Valley Friends of Animals, and will probably continue to make donations. Perhaps helping other rescue animals will ease the pain of losing mine. I got her when I was so young- hardly an adult- and we grew up together.

She really did rescue me and I couldn't be more grateful.

Good bye, dear friend.

Onward

This has been an interesting couple of weeks.

It's been like the weather; a dump of snow, then a melt, then a bunch of sunny days and back to winter.

I love the view from the English department

There is something about Ponderosa Pine trees in the snow

I'm not so good at the phone phocus

Mmmm, winter!

This is my new "I Love Winter" necklace. 

Before Christmas, G went to the doctor because his voice was cutting out. He was snoring so loud I could hear him from downstairs. Sometimes, it felt like something was stuck in his throat.

When I say "he went to the doctor", I mean that he doesn't really do that unless he feels it's necessary. But he went. She sent him to a specialist, an otolaryngologist. He took a look; stuck a doohickey (sorry for the technical term) down his nose and took a peek. Said "that needs to come out."

Wait, what? What needs to come out? Huh?

Some sort of growth. A burst polyp.  You can get polyps in lots of place on your body. Colon, nose, throat, places like that. This one nestled on top of Gs vocal chords.

The Oto said this needs to come out now; G said "Let's wait until after Christmas".  He scheduled the surgery for the second week of January.

While Christmas was fun and traveling is exciting, I had a low-level worry the whole time. Like when you know there's a sliver stuck in your toe or something. Can't do anything about it but you always know it's there and try not to worry.

The surgery was really efficient. We arrived at the outpatient surgery center at 7; we left at 10. G had never had a surgery before. He said the hardest part was getting the IV put in. That man. The doctor told me that the polyp was larger than he thought and that in a week we'd know if it was malignant of benign.

Anyway, thus began three days of no talking and another week of low-level worry. I tried to teach him a little bit of sign language but G figured that I'm good at context clues and lip reading and that for the rest he could trace letters in the air or text me.  Sometimes this was hilarious and effective. Sometimes this was hilarious and frustrating.  Sometimes I just made up stuff he would never say, like "Don't you think it's time we bought a farm in the country", and "Seriously, can you make me a well-done steak?"

He lived. He ate popsicles.  He had to stay home for those three days and while I was at work, on the first damn day, he drove himself to McDonalds and wrote a note for a caramel frappe.  What the ham sandwich?!!

I went to his boss and explained that while he could be at work Thursday and Friday of last week, he couldn't talk. It wasn't a problem. When he went back to work, G reports that he used an entire pack of post-it notes answering questions.  They were not yes or not questions, apparently. And his boss doesn't exactly use email.

So on Dr. King's birthday (which I usually write about but this year I suck), we went back for the test results.

Benign.

But then the sun came out and it was 51 degrees.

<3 nbsp="" td="">

Confession: I don't have a "low" level setting for worrying. It's sort of my hobby and preoccupation. I like to pretend that I don't worry about things. However, once I set my mind to it, I can worry about just about anything.

Like Eleanor, the sweetest kitty and my best little friend of 18 years, who does have cancer.

I have a full blood panel done on her every 6 months. In May, all was clear. In November, it showed on the CBC.

I am sorry, readers. I just didn't know how to tell you.

She's doing ok, really. Doesn't eat very much. throws up more often. I give her medicine to stimulate her appetite and suppress the vomiting, though it will shorten her lifespan. This could take months or a year or just a few weeks.

When we went to Europe, she stayed with my friend Joy. Joy asked if I wanted to know during the trip if Eleanor died. Yes. Yes, of course I wanted to know that very instant. G was not in favor of this. But no, I couldn't have gone a day without worrying that this day it had happened and I didn't know.  It would have ruined the trip for me.  So Joy promised to tell me and sent me picture after picture of Eleanor, with her daughter, with her, eating, and sleeping on her heating pad. Yes, I sent the heating pad and that wonderful and afghan along to comfort her.  And I set up with my vet that if she needed any kitty health care, she would have it.

This is an exercise in not worrying for me. I don't know the source of the cancer and I'm not going to. I don't want to put her through a bunch of tests. It's not like she is healthy enough for them to remove a growth or even put her under anesthetic. And when the time comes, I'm going to see if the vet will come to the house to help her through those final, awful hours rather than taking her out of the comfort of home.

Until then, I am awakened every morning to what I term "aggressive snuggling".  Eleanor still gets around well and can navigate the stairs.  She sleeps on the bed and wakes me up by purring, then laying on the pillow with me and napping a bit.  Then she puts her face by mine.  Then I pet her. Then she nudges me with her head until I either keep petting her or get up to give her food and/or water. Personally, I think she's using cancer to get into more mischief and get away with it.  Now she'll sit beside me in the kitchen and head butt me until I feed her. She used to get squirted with water if she was a pest. Now I just can't. And somehow, she.knows.it.

I'm going to need you to feed me some tuna. By hand.

G is not buying it. Yes, he adores Eleanor. Yes, he will pet her all day and clean up vomit and make a run to the grocery store for me to get cans of the particular food that she's into (while ignoring the 90 other flavors in the pantry).  But when she's bad, she still gets a little squirt of water. I know this because when I told him about her condition, I proclaimed announced that from here on out, she wouldn't ever get into trouble again, he may have quietly chuffed. I didn't hear that part because emotions. But last week, I was petting the sweetest kitty in the world and telling her how awesome she is, and noticed her fur was wet. "Did you give Eleanor a drink?"
"In a sense."
"...?"
"She scratched on the bathroom door. She got squirted."
"But.....cancer!"
"She's well enough to be a bad cat; she's well enough to pay the consequences."
Heh.

But I'm still going to worry.

50 Random Questions

So I haven't read through these questions. I'm going to just paste them into the blog and answer as I go along.
Fun, right? No guarantees!

1. Would you rather be twice as smart or twice as happy?

Neither. I'm pretty smart. I'm also just as happy as I make up my mind to be, so we'll call my life the blessing of "enough". 

2. What's your worst habit?

My worst habit? I'm so self-critical. 

Take off glasses. Brush hair. Put on a shirt with sleeves. Maybe get a tan.... maybe some make up.

When I see pictures of myself, I just see what can be improved or how old I am getting. I have to remember that life is for living, not for being so damn vain. 

3. Are you dating?

As a matter of fact, yes. My husband and I have a date night each week- cliche, I know, but it works. It breaks up the week and lets us connect with each other. We don't do much; a movie, appetizers out, stuff like that. And we reserve that time for each other.

4. Do you take shampoo and conditioner bottles from hotels?

 No. I used to but it dries out my hair and my hair is already dry (see Q2). 

5. What is the one thing you'll never do again?

I'll most thankfully never have another first date. I'll do lots of things again, or at least I am willing. I'll paraglide, get more tattoos, eat weird foods. But I'd never give up on G. 

6. Do you collect anything?

Books. pictures of my adventures, memories, electronics, and apparently, clothing. And shoes. I'm a shoe hog.

7. Worst injury you ever had?

It's not something I talk about much. I've broken bones and I've wrecked my feet, I've got some arthritis in my hip and knee. But what hurt, hurt, was when my ex-husband and I were taking martial arts classes and he overdid it on a joint lock. It was a belt test, and he did it wrong the first time. On the second and last try, he ripped the tendons in my right wrist. It made a huge popping sound. That's not what hurt. What hurt is that he blamed me for it. Because I hadn't pretended he did the lock correctly the first time. I still have to be careful with my right wrist. The other students at dojo never got over that though. They didn't trust him anymore. 

I hadn't planned on telling that story. I don't really talk about my martial arts days, but I was a third degree black belt in Kempo Karate. I taught and took lessons for the greater part of a decade. I loved it and I was really good at it. 

8. What is your favourite pet/ animal?

I love most pets. And I've had a few. Dogs, cats, sheep, and a guinea pig.  I'd like to get a few pygmy goats for pets, but that's going to have to wait awhile. I do get along well with most animals immediately. Heck, I was once accepted into vet school. 

Right now, my favorite pet is Eleanor. She's something. And the only cat my husband isn't allergic to. They've grown fond of each other these last three years. 

Best pals

I have more pictures of my cat than of my family. 

In the way of adorable animal pictures, my nephew Joe has the CUTEST pit bull. She is happy all the time. Her name is Leia.

9. What's your dream vacation?

 I'd like to do parts of Western Europe. Or all of it. Maybe a series of vacations. Lots of people want tropics or sun and sand. I don't. I want culture and people and cold weather. Maybe mild weather, but cold is good. I want to spend Christmas in Germany or Austria just once. I want to spend enough time in these places to learn language and get jokes. 

10. Honestly, are things going the way you planned?

Depends on the when you're talking about the planning.  Very little of my life has gone as planned. I have an idea of the direction I'm going. That's about it for now. There is an old man under a mountain and every time I plan my life, he chuckles. 

11. Do you have any tattoos?

Yes, I do. I love them and they have meaning. I contemplated each of them for a long time before I got them. And I've been contemplating a third for some time now. 

One of two tatts

12. What's your secret to lure in the opposite sex?

I don't have one. Although, to lure G, I found that blueberry pancakes work pretty well. And homemade blueberry jam. And a little blueberry behind each ear does the trick too.  And being myself.

Back when I was "luring" men, I wasn't very good at it anyway. 

13. Any phobias?

I worked in a prison for almost a year. As a result, I usually find myself in any room with my back to a wall, just in case. I don't like crowds anymore either. My experiences changed me in some difficult ways. And I have always disliked man-made heights. Weird though, because I don't mind large cliffs in the least. I used to have hyper vigilance, but it's subsided and I feel safe more often than not. 

14.  Do you bite your nails?

No. They are usually too long and I need to trim them. 

15. Do you ever count your steps when you walk? 

I usually record my steps with a fitbit. Mine recently died and I haven't replaced it. I hate guessing. I like to keep around 12,000-15,000 steps a day.

16. Heels or flats?

Sneakers, boots, and flip flops, thanks. 

17.Have you ever stolen a street sign before?

No. Is that a thing?

18. Do you always smile for pictures?

I don't like my smile much.

19. Do you ever dance even if there's no music playing?

No, is that also a thing? 

20.  Do you miss anyone right now?

Yes. Old friends in Oklahoma and my sweet old dog who lives a very happy life back in OK with some friends and their 4 kids.

21. What's your favourite colour?

Probably black. Maybe red.

22. Do you want kids?

Yes.  

23. Are you patient?

No. My brain tends to go a million miles an hour and I have a hard time slowing down for others. 

24. Can you swim?

Yes, I am a strong swimmer. Or at least I was. I haven't been swimming for a few years. I both love and hate swimming in the ocean. I love the salt water; hate the yucky jellyfish. 

25. Tea or coffee

Both.  Coffee- hot strong black- in the morning and tea in the afternoons and evening. 

26. What do you wear to bed?

27. Ever used a gun? 

Yes. I'm a pretty good shot with a .22 open site rifle. And I've used a thirty ought six for hunting. I've shot pistols. I'm better with a rifle. But I don't enjoy it. One of my acquaintances had her home broken into a few years back. She had two little babies in the house under the age of 5. She killed one of the people and injured a second. The third ran and was caught. It was the worst experience of her life. She wasn't charged or anything. It was just awful for her and her family. They moved out of state and sold the house. I can't bring myself to own a gun for that reason. But make no mistake; I have every other kind of weapon and know how to use it. I have them stashed about the house. 

28. Do you sing in the shower?

No

29. Are you stubborn?

About some things. I'm a good compromiser. 

30. Are you lazy?

No.  Too much time being inactive makes me depressed. I have to do stuff.

31. Can you change the oil in a car

I have done it before, but not on Gs car. On an older Ford truck, probably. 

32. When was the last time you wrote a letter to someone on paper?

A couple months ago. I have a friend who is incarcerated. I like to write him letters. I'm good that way.

33. Would you ever strip or pose nude in a magazine?

Not that anyone would want to see this, but how much money are we talking? 

34.What is your favourite food?

Po-tay-toes. 

Or maybe fresh crab pulled from the bay. Or tomatoes from the garden. Or stuff with cheese on it. 

I like food.

35. Do you still watch cartoons?

Sorry, I don't have time for that.

36. What movie(s) can you watch over and over again and not get bored?

Constantine, I think. And perhaps a few Sandra Bullock movies.

37. What superpower would you have for one day?

I would like to read people's minds. Probably for one day only. 

38. Whats been your favourite age so far? 

Every day I wake up. I didn't like my youth. I didn't get to be much of a child and our house was often angry and traumatic. I liked my 30s and I like my 40s so far. I'm 41. So I guess maybe I like today.

39. How old are you?

41

40. If you could go back in time, what advice would you give your younger self?

I've made so many mistakes. I would save myself so much heartbreak and so much pain. I would say "Go find examples of unconditional love. Copy them." I would tell myself that in the future, I would learn to accept who I am and what I am and that these things are not just enough, they are good. And that I am good too. It took me far too long to figure that out. Maybe some people never do. 

41. If you knew you would die in one week, what would you do?

I'm not sure. Maybe visit my family. Visit the ocean. See some friends and dance with them. Kiss my husband more. Write out the story of my life. 

42. What celebrity would you trade lives with?

Oh good lord, no. Just no. You couldn't pay me to be a celebrity.

43. Do people ever take you seriously?

Yes. It's the perks of being me, of being a professor. 

44. What happened the last time you cried?

It was about six months after my grandma died, so a few years ago. I hadn't cried about her death. She was close to all of my sister and me. I had a dream about her and told it to my friend V who was also my roommate at the time. She simply told me that my grandma is gone and there was nothing I could do about it. It was one of those great heaving sobs that you can't stop. V always seems to know just what to say. I have a sniffle from time to time, but I'm not really a crier.

45. Who knows you best?

My sister.

46.  Do you sleep with your closet doors open or closed?

Door closed. It's a small bedroom, and it's my husband's closet.  I actually have a dressing room. Yes, I'm that person!

47. What is your song of the week?

Scarborough Faire

48. Last person you kissed?

49. Best thing to eat for breakfast?

I don't eat much breakfast right now. Probably my Saturday thing with G: sliced cheese and fruit. Then some physical exercise outside.

50. Does anyone know the password to your email?

G does. You never know what might happen. 

Why I'm Still Smiling

I found out three weeks ago that I'd be losing my job.  The job that I took so we would have some security. The job that isn't what I wanted but what is what would allow us to settle nicely in our community, buy a little house and live our little lives. She didn't want to tell me alone so she had one of the deans come with her. I think she took it harder than I did. Seriously, bless her heart.

Sent this to my boss the other day when I was working from home. :)

I hate it when my plans are interrupted.  Of course, I've been down this particular road four times in the last two years at the same university.  The reason this time: funding cuts. Well, that's the first reason. The second reason is politics and truly, the budget cut wasn't about me or anything I have or haven't done. The university is overall sort of graceless, with some really nice, kind and loyal people interspersed throughout.  But mostly, they just don't have their stuff together.

I was offered another job- one that I helped create when I was on a committee this spring.  I'm pretty proud of my work on that committee too. And it was a great compliment to me that the job description was lifted directly from the report that I wrote (with credit too).  But ultimately, it's not what I want to do at this stage of my life. So I said no. G put it nicely. He said that it was time for me to recognize that while this is a nice place, I'm in a bad professional relationship and it's time to break up.  I agree.

So we're looking at packing and moving again.  I am tired of instability and I'm tired of feeling as though I am employed at the whim of people who do not know me, nor care one way or another about the predicament they leave me in.  I don't trust my university anymore.  I have a signed contract- guaranteeing me employment- and it did no good. That's all I'm going to say about it because I don't want to go down a bitter path.  Instead, G and I have decided that we'll take time and do a national job search. There isn't any place that's off limits, though we're more excited by Northern, cold climates than boiling Southern ones.  Like I said though, nothing is out of consideration.

I have a back up plan to teach full time at the university this next year while I look for something more suitable, so we're ok there.  The English department has been fantastic, absolutely fantastic.

So I'm still smiling. The weather is great- not too hot and not too cold.  Eleanor the kitty is in great health and seems to be more feisty every day, and G and I are both in good health.  Heck, everyone in our family is right now.  That may not seem like a big deal but to me it is.

Oh, and we had our second wedding anniversary a few weeks ago.  It was fun and we went hiking and even took a trip to Seattle to see the museum. G visited Trader Joes for the first time and we shopped till we dropped. It was a great day.

I'll keep you posted on the job situation. I haven't mentioned it to many people because I'm not in shock and I'm not really worried, just intent on doing the right thing.

Post-Christmas

Christmas was yesterday and passed rather quietly.  I missed snow. I love a white Christmas and almost asked G to drive us up a mountain pass so I could see it.  We went for a walk instead.  Mind you, it's cold enough for snow. It's been lingering in the 20s and 30s for weeks now. We just don't get precipitation here.  If we did, it'd be snowy here in a flash and for a long time.  I think our best Christmas tradition is taking a walk together.  We did that, we made a lovely meal, opened presents, called our families, watched "The Lion in Winter" and fed the cat some tuna for a Christmas meal.  She is so spoiled, even my husband's sister sent her a gift!

I think we're going to head to Seattle this weekend.  My friend E and her family are heading home from the holidays, back to San Diego from our hometown.  We're going to meet up for brunch before their flight.  Her son is growing up- he's a about 14 months old now- and I've never met her husband. But E and I go way back. Our families go way back. Her grandpa was the doctor who delivered my mom. Our parents went to school together, even in the same grade. E and I also graduated together in the same class.

E is smarter than I am, and really classy. She's a life-long equestrian with beautiful mediterranean skin and hair and warm eyes. She should be one of the Onassis family members if you ask me.  I like her a lot too. She's one of the few classmates I've stayed in contact with after high school.  We both went into teaching and our lives paralleled in many ways and we find qualities in each other to admire.  We are both teachers, though she teaches physics and I teach English.  That should tell you a lot right there.  I like her restraint and her ability to plan and execute and make sound decisions using stuff like data and reason.  She admires my ability to tell people what I think and have them thank me for it, and my impetuousness that sometimes pays off.  Next to her, it's easy to feel like a frumpy version of Anna Nicole Smith, except that we get along so well. We come from the same community and despite our differences, experienced many of the same childhood traumas- just from different perspectives.  Oh, and also, E can and does drive a combine from time to time to help out with harvest.  I'll be sure to post a few photos.  Hopefully, we can get them to meet us at the 5 Spot, a popular and delicious brunch spot on Queen Anne Hill.

I guess the other news is about my job.  I can't really go into detail in an online forum, but my contract has been extended through June 30th.  That's great news! I was pretty upset but getting to a place where I could enjoy only teaching 4 classes.  After accepting the overload (3 is full time here), I found out I'd also be working 3/4 time.  Instead of working three days a week, I'm going to be putting in about 55 hours a week between teaching and work.  But it's only for the next quarter; ten weeks. Then I'll drop to two classes and go up to full time, which is what I've been doing all along.  Wish me luck!

I hope you all had a great Christmas, with peace and joy and a few presents shared among those you care for, enough to eat and a warm place to lay your head.

Random 5

Ok, so my Random 5 isn't on Friday this week, it's on Sunday.  Ah well, I'll give you your money back on this one!

Anyway, here are 5 random things from my week.

1.  My cat takes selfies.  She's pretty good at it too.

"This is my good side"

2. I took my students Dumpster diving this week.  The trash situation in Washington is amazing.  Of the six or so sites we visited, they were organized, clean, and had recycling for plastic, paper and aluminum.  Not anything like what I saw when doing this in Oklahoma.

3. I gave an assignment for my students to go outside of their comfort zone and try something they have never done before.  I gave a list of 20 or so suggestions. Two of the males in my classes chose to go try on women's clothing and not explain if they were asked.  I am proud of them for choosing to challenge ideas of gender and masculinity. Both reported it being an uncomfortable experience, but worth it.

Not my actual student

4. We went hiking yesterday and really enjoyed it.  For once, the wind wasn't up and the sun was.  It was a beautiful, bright, clear fall day.  We scared up a couple covey of quail (say that twice fast!), and a few little snakes by the marshy areas, and found a hornet's nest.  I loved it- beautiful day and hours of visiting with G. Ellensburg is a wonderful compromise for us; G gets a city and I get away from people by walking 15 minutes in any direction.

Nobody was home

The trails here are well managed.

5. Confession: I put off my grading all weekend and now I have to spend my afternoon grading. Wah! Fortunately, I will have help and inspiration from the usual suspect.

She finds your grammar...lacking. 

There you have it. Hope you had a good weekend and week.  I'm also excited that my niece, who just started college a few weeks ago, has moved out on her own.  I'm a proud auntie, even though she thinks English is her worst subject. <3 br="" nbsp="">