Surprise Reunion

The keeper got up a bit late and went to the noon Mass at the cathedral. She didn't really hear the homily because she was distracted by a man who had passed out in the north transept and was impressed by the way the ushers all dealt with it without missing a step of the Mass. A little eerie actually, the way it happened separate from the communal prayer. But, we suppose that it is all part of an economy of scale--they could do this every weekend. We were thrilled to hear that the keeper ran into the Whisker City bus at the Lake Forest Park Farmers' Market. She spoke to the woman who runs the shelter who remembers Alice when her name was Baby Girl and was all emaciated. Now Alice has her photo on the wall there and is a lot fatter, and bossier, I would say. But the keeper brought home a bag of the special catnip that April Brown's mother grows in Wenatchee. They do such good work, we are proud to be associated with them.

The keeper also brought home a big box with pieces of wood that when put together will become a potting bench for the garden. She says there are a lot of pieces and a lot of screws. So it will be a slow project, that teaches her patience. It is her birthday present to herself. It will also make a good scratching post. We had grilled chicken tonight on top of the regular cat food. And we are content.

Hunt for the Kindle

Today, Saturday, the keeper returned to us later than we expected. She told us that she had been running all over town trying to find out where the raffle box for the Kindle was. The Friends of the Library are raffling off a Kindle on Dec 12, and she felt it might be a lucky day. But no one could figure out what happened to the box. She will find it later. A good excuse to go down again. Finally, she left the wildlife and rain and sand on a rainy day and returned to us and our lovely home in sun. We tried to look unimpressed, but broke down by night fall. Julie was a very good cat sitter, though. The keeper says that she will go down again in the fall. Maybe she will take us. But I get carsick, and Alice has never gone so far. But we would like to leave our signature on the bear so everyone down there knows we are alive and strong and we would like to visit Virginia the cat's grave.

Library Day at Home

Friday, the keeper said it started to rain really hard in the afternoon and she said that she holed up in the house and read Eat, Pray, Love. She thinks the praise and popularity of this book is way over blown. While she thinks that the search for a life and spirituality which nourishes and serves as a compass is real, she found the author self-centered, shallow. So there! She found the last Harry Potter book far more engaging. She read it till early in the morning. We think she is anxious to see us.

Nickel Lips and Harry Potter

Thursday, the keeper rose earlier than usual and spent the morning on the deck, and 90 minutes with Qwest trying to get better deals. It worked, she said, but we must look at the long haul pay offs, not the cost of the present 90 minutes. She rode furiously into town as the mist came, and she dodged and weaved though all of the trucks and flaggers who are repaving the roads and building a crazy roundabout in the middle of town. As a reward she stopped at Buddy and Howies’ Candy Shoppe, looking for an Idaho Spud, but had to settle for mango and black Australian style licorice and those wax bottles ( Nickel Lips!) with some kind of flavored juice.

She had a nice visit with the editor of the town paper who invited her to submit a list of her 10 favorite things to do in OS. He has done a remarkable job of turning that sorry little rag around and finding news in the most simple of places. Then she headed to La Chica Taqueria for a heavenly carnita ( pork) taco. Chez Chey was closing up very early because the roundabout construction had driven away all of her trade. It was ghostly vacant of tourists. She had a good poster up about the barrel racing which was taking place on her street, eg…the crazy construction project and the way the workers mindlessly move the barrels around. It’s a labor intensive project, for sure. The poster noted lots of free parking, since no one was visiting (and it is true!)

She ended her adventures with a real movie in a real theater..only 8 people were watching, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. But she was grateful for the lack of fight scenes. Julie and Julia starts on Friday, so she may end her beach days at the movies again. It is raining again. SHe is comin home to us on Saturday.

Moon and Mater

Wednesday night the canal was mirror still and the heron pair flew up and down. The neighbors across the canal came to their dock and the keeper was on our dock and they conversed back and forth as they watched the fat carp come up and try to join the conversation. No beavers or otters, though. But she watched the crescent moon rise over the reeds.

She did finish The Soloist about Mr. Nathaniel Ayers, the very talented musician who happens to also be a schizophrenic, whose story was told by reporter St Lopez, who became his friend. A powerful story of friendship and mental illness and street life.

She said she ended the day with a very powerful DVD which she helped produce (only a little), Images of God, all about Meinrad Craighead’s artistic visions of God the Mother. The keeper said that this woman’s images are so close to her own spirit that it is scary. At one film, Meinrad mentioned being in touch with the feral energy of God. The keeper said she knew exactly what she was speaking about, especially as she lives so close to the wild there at the ocean. A little Mary Oliver in there as well. When they spoke about the fire which devastated the bosque in Albuquerque several years ago, Meinrad had to paint the pain of the animals whom she had come to know, as they and their young perished in the blazes. Also, some lovely sections about the Black Madonna and Montserrat in España. She did finish The Soloist about Mr. Nathaniel Ayers, the very talented musician who happens to also be a schizophrenic, whose story was told by reporter St Lopez, who became his friend. A powerful story of friendship and mental illness and street life.

She said she ended the day with a very powerful DVD which she helped produce, called Images of God, all about Meinrad Craighead’s artistic visions of God the Mother. The keeper said that this woman’s images are so close to her own spirit that it is scary. At one film, Meinrad mentioned being in touch with the feral energy of God. The keeper said she knew exactly what she was speaking about, especially as she lives so close to the wild there at the ocean. A little Mary Oliver in there as well. When they spoke about the fire which devastated the bosque in Albuquerque several years ago, Meinrad had to paint the pain of the animals whom she had come to know, as they and their young perished in the blazes. Also, some lovely sections about the Black Madonna and Montserrat in España.

Ted Kennedy, RIP

On the morning after Teddy Kennedy died, the keeper found this memorial marker on Polaris Ave. She doesn't think it is for Teddy but for someone who may have been killed at that spot. But it fit the spirit of the morning, she thought.

Where She Did Not Go

Wednesday…another slice of heaven on the North Coast. The keeper reported to us ( a bit whiningly) that she had spent more time inside the library than expected trying to get our blog done. But she did go back to the Weatherwax to check and see if the cougar alert was still alive, and the signs were still up. So, no Weatherwax trails for the keeper. We are grateful, although we do really like our cat sitter, Julie