Off to Buffalo

A few months ago my daughter-in-law told me I could not make any plans over New Year's. I usually go to my daughter's in Wisconsin to babysit. So I had conjured up several possibilities for this mystery gift:

1.) an extreme makeover where some supposed fashion expert takes one look at my wardrobe and tells me the 60's are over. I am forced to buy new clothes, get make up, get my hair done, etc. I hope this isn't the surprise.

2.) mission organization comes into my home, (....shutter....) , declutters and organizes everything.

3.) a trip to my sister's in NY. She has a big New Year's party every year, I've only been once. Her dgtr is home from the Army on leave, gets married in Feb in Hawaii where she is stationed.

4.) spa days locally.

Well, number 3 was the correct answer. I leave tomorrow afternoon for Buffalo. That is Buffalo, NY, not MN. Buffalo, MN is about an hour away.I hope the storms and delays in Chicago don't mess up the schedule too much. This will be my first visit back home since my ICU stay and near death. It will be good to see friends and cousins again. The New Year's party is January 1st in the late morning - early afternoon. I return on Thursday. I look forward to lots of photo taking and scrapbooking. I hope the little shop in the airport that sells beef on wick is open. No place else has beef on wick like Buffalo does.

Snow Emergencies

Saint Paul and Minneapolis act like cities which never see snow. When I first moved here 19 years ago I don't think the city ever plowed. Cars disappeared into deep ruts on Hague Avenue where I lived. Then a few years ago they did a turn about and declared snow emergencies every time it snowed 2 inches or more. Like many cities many, if not most residents, park on the street. So, what happens when you don't move your car during a snow emergency? You got it, you get towed. Residents have to play snow tag. Each city has its own rules about which side of the street, whether north/south, or east/west streets you can park on depending if it's an even or odd day. In other words, you need to be an engineer or math major to figure out where and when you park. This time around the snow emergency was declared on Christmas Day so out of town visitors woke up to no car. Scrooge had visited. Or residents came back from being away to find their cars gone. Both cities claim they make no money on tows. Yah, sure, you betcha. Someone makes money. Fortunately I have never been towed but I'm good at playing the game. Emily once got a ticket in Roseville while visiting her brother for an hour. At least they didn't get around to towing her before her visit was over. Yesterday I was at the scrapbook shop and lo and behold, some poor sucker is going to wonder where their car went.

God's Grandeur

Today is one of those days that recalls the words of Gerard Manley Hopkins' poem, God's Grandeur. I had a nun in college who thought Hopkins was second only to William Shakespeare. You say you don't know Gerard Manley Hopkins? If you went to high school in New York state you did study him in English class, it was required in the days when the entire state followed the regents' curriculum. So I knew of him prior to education by the Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart but it was in college that he was presented as the greatest poet of the Victorian Age.

Gerard Manley Hopkins (July 28, 1844 – June 8, 1889), a Jesuit priest, was an English poet whose posthumous, 20th-century fame established him among the finest Victorian poets. His experimental explorations in prosody (especially in regard to sprung rhythm) and his vibrant use of imagery established him as both an original and daring innovator in a period of largely traditional verse. In 1864, Hopkins' reason for conversion to Catholicism was because of the reading of the deeply moving John Henry Newman's Apologia pro vita sua.

I wasn't particularly fond of Hopkins myself but every once in awhile a day arrives that reminds me of his best known poem, and today is one of those days.

So, here it is. I'm sure Sister Mary (can't remember rest of name), GNSH, is smiling down on me. She and Gerard are probably enjoying a spot of tea on such a grand day.

The world is charged with the grandeur of God.

It will flame out, like shining from shook foil;

It gathers to a greatness, like the ooze of oil

Crushed. Why do men then now not reck his rod?

Generations have trod, have trod, have trod;

And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil;

And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell: the soil

Is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod.



And for all this, nature is never spent;

There lives the dearest freshness deep down things;

And though the last lights off the black West went

Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs--

Because the Holy Ghost over the bent

World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings.


Hopefully the sun will come out and I can add more photos.

The Day the Wind Blew

Saturday we got a little new snow. The day was balmy by Minnesota standards, in the 20's, sun shining.The cats enjoyed playing in the snow on the balcony.This set of photos were all taken Saturday.

Then Sunday arrived. It was about 5 degrees but with the wind felt much colder. The wind blew and blew yesterday. 30 mph all day with gusts that were up to 50 mph. It was cloudy to begin with, then with the falling,blowing snow there was no visibility. I had plans to go out shopping but quickly changed my mind and stayed in all day. There were so many accidents yesterday. People really need to stay home during this kind of bad weather.Nothing is so important it can't wait for another day. Gifts can be exchanged at another time. Really, the wise men didn't appear on Christmas, they came later. We celebrate it liturgically at a different time, which would seem to be the better time to exchange gifts. Some people won't be opening their Christmas gifts due to dying in car accidents from the bad weather. 9 died in MN due to weather related accidents.I tried taking some photos but the view from my apt all day were whiteout conditions. The photos just show white on white, I moved them to the trash.

Wexford, my big dark gray/white cat, is becoming friends with my 6 month old grandson Armando. He's the only one of the cats who plays with the baby. Armando tugs on his ears, which he loves. Armando stayed overnight with me, his parents went to the Vikings game at the Dome. The Vikings lost. Alex and Camila are both working today so Armando is still me me. It's nap time.

My 10 y.o. grandson found out today he is getting a baby brother in May. Ever since his Mom learned she was pregnant he has been so excited and hoping for a boy. The new baby won't be my grandchild but I will treat him like another grandchild. A baby is a baby, always a reason to rejoice.

I hope each of you is having a peaceful, sober holiday, enjoying time with family and friends.

Thursdays With Armando

Thursdays are my days with my 6 month old grandson. At 4 1/2 months he was transitioned to day care. He is in a great Spanish speaking daycare. It is good for him to be with other little rugrats. It is also great having one day alone with his abuela. Today we are going to the school where I was the school nurse for 15 years. It serves special needs kids. We want Armando getting used to kids who are different. Today is the Christmas program.

It has been super gray outside this week. Very depressing. Today the sun is out ;-) I have cardinals in the trees. So far I can't get photos, I open the sliding door to my balcony and away they go.

BTW, while I sometimes write about my grandchildren you won't see their photos here. I am not willing to share their photos publically due to the weirdos who troll blogs and other sites looking for child photos, which they copy and then alter. It's a sad commentary on life today but that's the way it is.

This photo is the view looking out my window.

El gato en Colombia

Here is a photo of my son's birth sister's cat. His sister loves cats too. She is a wonderful 13 y.o. girl and we are very glad to know her and her Mom (Alex's Mom too).

Yes, It's true......

I have 4 cats. Well, I really have 3 but I am a foster mom to my son's cat for now. Frankly I can't imagine life without cats. My sister is the same way. Right now there is a tiny kitten hanging out around her house. She feeds it daily and hopes it will come to trust her and join the family. I'm not sure how many cats Helen currently has. I think 4. Her husband is also a cat lover.

Think I should send this photo to my pulmonologist? LOL. Yes, he does know I have cats. He just rolls his eyes and keeps his opinion to himself because he knows I will NEVER get rid of my cats.

Winter Wonderland

I have been at my daughter's house the past week. Sunday morning we woke up to see all the trees covered with heavy frost. It was truly beautiful.

Can you see the bunny in Emily's backyard?

OK Emily, I Know....

I'm not keeping up with my "daily" blogging. But I'm keeping up with at least one photo/day. It's hard being old, LOL.

These are photos I took yesterday on Hwy 29 in Wisconsin. I always see Amish buggies somewhere along the route. I was losing hope yesterday, saw none around Abbotsford. But then around Stanley I did. One horse got spooked by all the cars so the man had to get out and lead him across the road. I wouldn't want to cross 29 either,

Keeping Up

I have kept up with a photo per day. Now blogging is a different story. At this moment I am getting ready to do penance: Christmas shopping at the Mall of America. But I wanted to post a few photos I've taken with the Canon Rebel EOS my son gave me. Uffda, I have a lot to learn about this camera. The first 2 photos are of my favorite scrapbook store. The 3rd is of 2 of my cats and my foster cat.

New Camera

My younger son updated his camera so he gave me his Canon Rebel EOS. I can't wait to start taking photos with it. I'm thinking I'll have to sign up for a course on using it. I'm not sure what Alex's new camera is, I just know it cost $4,500!!! He is in his 3rd year of college, majoring in photography.

More snow is predicted for tomorrow. I hope the storm will be followed by sun so I can get better photos than I did of the weekend storm. It's been overcast and cloudy since our 6 inches on Saturday.

I took cat photos today but my posted photo is of one taken this summer. I live to swim. Obviously I did not take the photo, LOL. I'm not a Bernadette.

Wrinkles and Genetics

This photo is of my great grandmother, taken at age 90. My sister, and I are clones of her. Our deceased mother also looked just like her. It is very weird to look at a photo that is over a hundred years old and see yourself. What I like though is her perfect complexion. I have very few wrinkles despite years of growing up on a lake in the pre sunscreen days. My mother had a few more wrinkles but she smoked, and that is one thing that can increase wrinkles. But she still was relatively wrinkle free compared to peers. You can never underestimate the role of genetics. I did everything right as far as promoting good health: never smoked, never drank, grew up on organic food. But on my father's side of the family it is hard to find someone who doesn't have cancer. So, I have cancer but hot damn I have a good complexion.

Another condition that is genetically determined in my opinion is osteoporosis. No female on either side of my family ever had a broken hip or any other bone fractures after menopause. Nor did any of the men have old age fractures or significant loss of height. I have no estrogen in my body, thanks to anti-estrogen cancer treatment;do not drink milk or eat much dairy, take no calcium supplements, and do drink coke. Yet my bone density is at 125% for my age. I have the bone density of a healthy 25 y.o. male. I know my walking and weight bearing exercise help but genetics is just as important.

When it comes to genetics however we cannot choose our genes. I'm just glad I didn't get the wrinkle or osteoporosis gene.

Photo Challenge

Gina, Mitch, and I have challenged each other to take a photo per day. We began today, a good day to begin since we have our first snow of the season. I took several photos and I'm sure they did too. Gina and I are going to try and blog everyday too. It should be easier for me given my retirement status. Gina has 3 jobs and is always busy but I think she'll blog more regularly than I will. But I do like challenges so I may just keep up with her.

It began snowing this a.m. The forecast was for 6 to 10 inches but I would say we only have about 5 inches.It has stopped snowing for the moment but may snow more during the night. It is very pretty outside, like it always is with freshly fallen snow. Tomorrow I'm going to walk through Crosby Park. It is full of spooky old trees, a beaver dam (still haven't been able to get a photo of the beavers), deer, at least one red fox, and various other animals, all in the heart of the city.

Today's photo is the view outside my apartment. You can see the tracks on which the train goes by several times a day. I love the sounds of trains. Trains bring back memories of my grandmother coming to visit us, my trips to New York City on the Phoebe Snow, and the McBride farm in Chester, NY. The railroad tracks were across from the black earth onion farm Uncle Will and Aunt Carrie operated.

Crazy Cat Lady

I proudly wear the title of the Crazy Cat Lady of Crosby Pointe. I hope when I die I am found curled up in my bed with a good book opened next to me and surrounded by my cats.

Anyway this is in response to anonymous smacker 1116 a.m. who wrote: "Nell, I'm sorry to go off topic but your cat is just gorgeous. I'm a cat lover myself but we can't have any here because my hubby is allergic to them. My oldest son used to bring home every stray he found and at one time we had 4 cats."

Thanks 11:16 a.m. The photo you refer to is of Wexford. He is a very elegant cat who is very photogenic. He is 3 1/2 years old, weighs about 18 pounds, and is a big wuss of a cat. He is afraid of his own shadow. He is a gentle giant. His sister Kilkenny is a grey tortoise shell. Lately she seems to have developed anxiety. I'm not sure why. I would think she had hyperthyroidism except she's getting fatter, not thinner. I may end up taking her to the vet. Wexford and Kilkenny joined me 3 1/2 years ago after I saw an ad in the paper. I was planning just to take the female but I couldn't leave the male; the rest of the litter had been adopted already. I had never had a male car before and was a little concerned, having heard about spraying their territory and being aggressive. My fears ended up being unfounded. Now I think I'll only take male cats, they seem more gentle.

I was happy with 2 cats. I should mention, I have had cats all my life. The 2 cats I had before Wexford and Kilkenny had gone over the rainbow bridge a few months previously. My younger son mentioned he wanted a cat as did my friend Jess. So I called the lady I had gotten my 2 kitties from. Well, Wexford and Kilkenny's mom was expecting another litter in a few weeks. She had 4 kittens. The owner planned to keep one. My son would only take 1, Jess wanted only 1, so that left 1 lone kitty. That kitty became my 3rd cat, Donegal. He is all gray. He and his siblings are now 1 1/2 years old. They are much smaller than their older siblings. Different fathers maybe? The mom cat is quite small.Wexford, Kilkenny, and Donegal keep me entertained. They love to be outside on my 4th floor balcony. They go crazy over the birds. I expect Donegal will one day leap off the balcony in pursuit of a bird.

11:16 a.m., you mentioned allergies. I actually am allergic to cats. I have severe persistent asthma, which developed a few years ago. When my cats were kitties they bothered me but as they scratched me in playing I became less allergic to them. My pulmonologist makes me bathe them weekly, they hate it but it does help. I also run hepa filters in the house and vacuum frequently. If I go to other homes with cats I am bothered but my own cats no longer bother me. I have a pulmonologist who thinks no one should have cats and an oncologist who thinks all cancer patients should have cats as part of their treatment. So I follow my oncologist's advice. She has 2 cats herself. If I didn't have cats I'd need a psychiatrist, cats are cheaper.

This photo is of Kilkenny looking out the window, wishing she was an outside cat.

Laziness

I have no excuse for not posting anything in October. When I started this blog my plan was to post 2 or 3 times/week. Obviously I fell short so I begin anew today.I will be posting separately about my trip to Colombia to visit family, and my grand-daughter's serious illness. Those 2 events took up most of October.

Now November is here. I can hardly believe Thanksgiving is soon upon us. And deer hunting season. I am not a hunter. I could never shoot Bambi's mom or dad. My daughter Em and my friend Jess can however. In fact, they love nothing better. They are honest to goodness women who kill. My daughter almost always gets the first deer in her group, which drives the men crazy. Her living room, which isn't all that large, has her buck from last year, a doe (either hers or her husband's), and an elk head mounted on the wall. I sleep on the couch when I visit. I wake up at night and think I'm in the middle of a forest. They are adding a wood duck to the wall. I don't get this thing with dead animals on the wall but that's what's great about people, we are all different. And Em and her husband eat what they kill. I guess their venison cheese brats are great. They have a hundred different recipes for using venison.

Next, a reply to an anonymous smack blog poster about my cats.

Good News

I had my bone scan on Monday. I always get a CD of any scans I have. I came home, put the CD in and read my scan. My reading was exactly the same as that of the radiologist. Degenerative arthritis of both feet, both knees (right > left), both elbows, both shoulders, and cervical spine. My lower spine is fine as our my hips. I walk a lot plus I have very strong bones so that's probably why those areas are fine. My left finger, which I broke in April, is still not healed so lots of uptake there. But no evidence of cancer in the bones. This is great news, as those who are on the cancer journey can attest. I still have pain in my left arm but as long as it's not mets I can deal with it. My next set of scans will be a MRI of liver in January, then CT of liver and lungs in July.

I need to get busy packing for our trip to Colombia on 7 October. We can only each take 1 small suitcase because we'll be driving from Bogota to Ibague, and cars there just aren't that big. I have a few small suitcases but they are cloth so I will probably go buy one that is hard plastic. You don't want cloth suitcases when flying out of Colombia since it's very easy for others to make a small slit and hide cocaine. Then workers at the Miami or whatever airport you fly into it remove it. But the dogs can still smell it and so of course you could end up being charged with smuggling.

I still have to find a dress to wear to the blacktie affair we're going to in Ibague. I'm not one to shop, it's a form of penance to me. I'll take my dgtr-in-law with me as I trust her taste and opinion. I don't trust mine at all.

I still need to make it to the mall to look at cell phones and find a new carrier. It won't be today. It will probably be next week.

Cell Phones

I got my 1st cell phone about 14 years ago. It was a very basic phone and the plan was a government plan, $10/month. I decided to get a cell phone because I frequently drove through a 40 mile stretch of a national forest in northern Wisconsin. I hit a deer one night, fortunately no real damage but I knew I might not be so lucky next time. I hardly ever used the phone for the first 8 years or so. It was strictly for travel. I had 60 minutes daytime use, 60 minutes night use. Eventually both the phone and plan were discontinued. I got a new phone and a new plan. Naturally there were no $10 plans left. I currently have a Samsung phone and Sprint PCS. It's about $29/month but after taxes and misc charges it's about $35/month. This month there was an extra charge of $30 for downloaded ring tones. I spent 24 minutes on the phone with Sprint to request that these charges be dropped. I have no extra ring tones and no downloads show up in my history. I have no clue where these charges came from. Well, the customer service representative refused to delete the charges.

So tomorrow, or more likely on Tuesday, I'm going to a Sprint store, show them the phone, and see if they can do something. If not, I'm cancelling Sprint. I have to decide what company to go with. One of my sons has ATT and likes it. My other son and his wife have Team Mobile and like it. They all have plans with a ridiculous number of minutes so they pay more than I can afford. I don't need a lot of minutes. The problem is there are so few plans that are cheap. I don't need a phone with all the bells and whistles either. If anyone knows of a cheap plan let me know.

Tomorrow I go for a bone scan. I have bone pain in my left upper arm. It's been present about 2 months. The plain films were normal. My oncologist feels a bone scan needs to be done since early metastasis usually doesn't show up on a plain film but will on a bone scan. I am not unduly worried. If I have bone mets then I'll just deal with it.

Today I've been just plain tired and ache all over. The weather was quite humid. Since developing severe pulmonary problems I find I simply cannot tolerate humidity. And of course autumn, my favorite season, is the one that most triggers my allergies. But I'm alive and that is always a good thing to be. And in 2 weeks I leave for Colombia, can't wait. I love it there.

The Smack Group

Well, it seems the anonymous crowd at smackblog(http://scrapsmack.blogspot.com/) are curious as to whether I have a blog. Well, I have two but to date hadn't yet posted. So I guess it's time to start.

So, I am retired as if you couldn't figure that out from the blog title. I worked as a R.N. for 40 great years. I had to retire due to poor health. I had planned to work another 10 years. I was sad about retiring but then my son and his wife had a beautiful baby boy 6 days before my retirement date so now I am a SAHG: stay at home grandmother. He'll go to a Spanish speaking daycare part time when he's older. For his first year he's with me when he's not with Mami and Papi. In 2 weeks the 4 of us head to Colombia to visit family there. This will be the baby's 2nd trip, he first visited at a month. My son is Colombian and is reunited with both birthparents there. His wife is Colombian, all her family is there. Vive Colombia.

If there's anything you anonymous smackers need to know just ask. I might answer, I might not.

Today's quote: "Peace is not the product of terror or fear. Peace is not the silence of cemeteries. Peace is not the silent result of violent repression. Peace is the generous, tranquil contribution of all to the good of all." Archbishop Romero