Hints of What's Coming

Two scenes reminding the keeper of the future. One more imminent than the other.

Hunthausen Golf Tournament Dinner

Yes, another late supper for me. 

Thank God I am smart enough to save a little of my food from the morning.

I have come to distrust her timely returns.  The keeper is such a social being.

Tonight after work she headed to Glendale CC.

Mapquest wasn't very helpful. But joggers were.

Her ten raffle tickets for $1500 worth of restaurant certificates were not lucky.

She did choose a very nice bottle of Merlot from these lovely people below, though.

Her table mates were very fun, and I know at least half.

She returned home before the sun disappeared into the west.

And since it all was for a good cause, I didn't complain too much about my continental dinner.

Congratulations to M and all who made it a wildly successful day and night!

High and Low Tech

Every Sunday Poem Man sits at the LFP Farmers Market.

He composes poems on demand using his manual typewriter, 

which in itself, is a novelty for anyone under  a certain age.

Today, the business was a little slow, 

and he was very busy on a more hi tech instrument 

when the keeper visited him.

Celebrating a Lot of Life!

Saturday was not a busy day for me at the cottage. I ate and napped.

The keeper was busy about many things, not for me, necessarily, but for the home.

I ate early.  Yes. Another celebration. 

At a home which has been a home for many many celebrations.

The hostess wanted to celebrate everyone else, 

since there were birthdays, anniversaries of commitments, and moves.

However, they surprised her since it was her birthday this week. 

They celebrated her incredible spirit of  friendship, hospitality and generosity which she has shown them all.

And they celebrated each other as well.

But I am still older than any of them! 

She came home bearing fragrance of a very rich poblano meal--Chicken in Mole.

But there were no leftovers.

TGIF on the Deck!

I was pleased to see her come home and stay home tonight.

We dined on the deck and watched the sky turn pink and violet.

We watched the mosquitoes come forth.

She put a flea type collar on her ankle to ward off mosquitoes.

I napped wile she read until the raccoons started climbing through the laurel bushes.

We called it a night when they started their prowl for water  (and small animals).

A Dinner with the Presumptive Mayor of Yachats

I was still feeling poorly.  However she came home, cooked a chicken breast, put it in the blender and fed me through an eye dropper.  I suddenly felt better. better enough to eat out of my dish.

Then she left me for another dinner.

This time their friend was in town from Yachats. OR.

He is running for mayor there. 

They shared gazpacho and many stories from the old seminary days.

Pretty unbelievable stories which were too wild to make up.

There were class yearbooks with photos of them and others looking oh, so young and earnest.

Send off for Kate

Last night I didn't eat.  Not because she didn't feed me but because I was ill. 

She ate, though.  She went to a dinner party to celebrate Kate's send off to finish her last year year if high school and start college all at the same time. 

I asked her why she didn't have photos of Kate.  She said she did, but she said Kate would be embarrassed to see them.

Count Ory and the Bad Habits

Tonight the keeper left me for the opera--Count Ory, a very silly opera which was perfect for a hot August night.

As everyone arrived at McCaw Hall they were welcomed by a pick up jazz group, The Bad Habits. The piano man grew too hot in his wimple and yanked it off.

An Upgrade

Today was equally hot.  But the keeper provided me with an alternative to sleeping in the dirt.

It was okay, but the dirt was cooler.

My Hot Day

It was a hot day here.  Not as hot as some summers, but hot.

I sought refuge in the bare dirt alongside of the garage. 

The keeper thought I had died.

The keeper sought refuge in her swing under the trees. 

The squirrel didn't seem to mind and stole tulip bulbs out of the ground 

and hid them while the keeper watched.  At least this year 

she won't be surprised when tulips spring up in the middle of the back lawn.

I finally took up my place in my chair as evening came and 

I helped her read her three books under the darkening sky.

Evening on Deck

The keeper and I shared an intimate dinner on the deck. 

Of course, I was hoping for a portion of the chicken salad. 

I scored a few small bites, but she got almost all of it.

The OP had given us a great citronella candle 

                        which gave off a fetching fragrance                       

 and did keep the pests away.

And the moon rose over the lake,

making her luminous appearance through our very leafy trees.

August Fleurish

Flowers haven't stopped blooming. 

The sun and heat are bringing out the hardiest, as well as the hose with the water bill.

August Luna Bella

Sigh.

 I see this moon reflected on the garage door windows from my perch.

Even the reflection lights up our driveway.

Dinner at Rose House

I was fed, but she left for a dinner to celebrate Judy's spacious new nest.

It's in the keeper's former parish.

Two twins were supposed to join but unfortunately,  sickness got the best of one of them.

Although the evening was quieter, they did pretty well on their own.

View from the Swing

This is vacation week here.

We sit outside and read books and get bitten by spiders.

This afternoon I joined the keeper in her swing and tried to help her read Middlemarch.

The breezes almost lulled us to sleep.

It's Never Too Early for Halloween

A quick trip to Costco proved it is never too early to plan one's Halloween costume.

Those 2.5 months will fly by!

Market Day

After Mass she went down to the LFP Farmers' Market.  

She bought flowers for tonight's event.

She also bought more plants for the front yard. 

Something about Monet.

She promised the nursery man this was her final visit.

He laughed and said, "See you next week!" He has her figured out.

Celebrating 204 Years!

Below you can see me sitting on the newly sealed deck. 

It was a birthday celebration.  Note that I had to wear the bow again.

It was not about me, although in cat years, I have them all beat, and had they included my birthday, they would have been pushing 300!

They spoke about topics which didn't include me...church things and politics and school. 

However, the OP made a splendid chicken dish out of the Silver Palate Cookbook.

The one who is almost as old as me fed me generous portions while they weren't looking.

It was excellent.

The keeper kept checking to see if I had escaped into the neighbors' yards. Why would I do that when I can dine on Silver Palate recipes?

The youngest brought the dessert. The strawberry cake rested on a bed of ice. 

They all loved it, and I wasn't offered any  That was fine. I am not much into fruit 

and I should stay away from whipped cream.

The Hondurans Go to Choir Camp

This week the keeper was taken up with many things.  One of the most consoling was supporting three of the Honduran children at Choir Camp.

 They took it all very seriously and slept all the way home each day, according to one of their drivers.

Hector was quite adept at the tambor,

And almost paid attention to the parts he did not sing.

August Augusta Guests

Tonight I ate very late.  The keeper was out with some old friends.

The keeper has known Anthony since their Gonzaga days.  He is from Manhattan. He married Ann, a   Smithie from Georgia.  They visit the keeper every few summers.  Tonight Ann may have unlocked the secret door to the solution to my allergy issues. I am allergic to other cats.  Just because the other cats died doesn't mean that their cat dander did. This probably means all of our rugs will go to the cleaners, and our furniture will be steam cleaned. They all need it anyway. So she will thank me later.

Thank you, Ann and Anthony.

A Delicious Reunion

I have to admit that these days are flying by.  I also have to admit that the keeper also flies by so that she can feed me and tell me that she will be home soon.  She doesn't have time to record our memoirs and she doesn't have time to eat here or hang out.  Everyone seems to be in town or visiting, and that's they way. She does remember to feed me and give me my medicine.

Tonight? 

An old friend who is now in Spokane is in town and they all had dinner together, but not here. 

She came home smelling of whippet and hamburger.

Thank You, Jesus!!

The deck project began in summer 2013.

It has been hovering on being finished for a year or so.

But not long ago, the keeper and Jesus decided that he would finish up what was abandoned by someone else.  And today you could have smelled the sawdust from his carpentry and the smell of the new stain and preserver.  Last week he washed and sanded it. 

It reminded the keeper of a palomino horse.

Caminata

Today was a vacation day for us. 

She took a very long walk, while I guarded the hearth and supervised while Jesus finished up all of those unfinished little pieces of the deck.  

The walk began in a bit of haze.

She said that she could see the mountain trying to makes its presence known behind the veil.

. Can you see it?

But when the sun came out the lake wore diamonds.