It’s Monday and limerick time. I’m giving you three prompts this week. Unfortunately, I’ve got to have some more shoulder surgery, so I’ll be out of action for a while. But I’d love to see your limericks so please send them in to give me a smile. I’ll publish them all when I’m back blogging again.
My limericks are all dedicated to our three deceased grandchildren, Samantha, Logan and Johnny. We miss them immensely.
PAIN
The Loss of a Grandchild.
Pain has filled my life, way too often The anguish never seems to soften Regardless of my age I suffer the rampage silently wishing …no more coffins
HEAL
Endless Heartbreak
Everyone says, give it time you’ll heal I don’t want time, I want a new deal I want to see them play Not be stolen away I never had the chance to appeal
NURSE
It Doesn’t Get Easier.
The nurse hopes for a heroic verse Knowing nothing said could make it worse The hand clenching a cross knowing words can’t ease loss The nurse silently uttered a curse.
I packed a lot of my bulkier pans today, and moved the ones that I had hanging on the copper pot bar by extra hooks into the cupboard. The pan rack came with six copper hooks but I had way more pans than that so when we hung it up we doubled the chain support and bought extra wrought iron hooks to hold my handled pans. This freed up the cupboard space for all the non-handled pans. The cupboards look less congested now. I didn’t want the next owner thinking all the wrought iron was included when she returns with the building inspector on Tuesday. People are quite presumptuous.
I’m still amused that she noted all landscaping in the bid. Upon further discussion, she was including my planters which are not permanent. Sorry about your luck, buy your own. Some of my planters went to my son’s and some are going with me. When we moved here there was nothing but that ugly green ivy that contractors use. The previous owners did nothing prior to us. In the back yard, I’ve planted hostas, peonies, juniper, hydrangea, lilies, and 2 beautiful rose bushes. There was a rhubarb patch but I’m not seeing it yet this spring. We did have a very wet and cold winter so it may not be returning. In the front, I’ve planted more hostas, 2 more roses, daffodils, lilies, tulips, gladiolus, and a weeping cypress. It’s a lot prettier than it was.
Macavity’s portable dvd player arrived yesterday. He wore out ours watching a cat sitter dvd. Yes, they make videos for cats. It has a continuous loop with birds at a feeder, mice playing in a cage, pigeons on a sidewalk, an owl in a tree, chipmunks scurrying in the grass, butterflies and cricket sounds in a meadow and the occasional frog. He watches for hours at a time, occasionally trying to catch with his paws. Originally, I got the dvd because he had separation anxiety when he first came to our home.
One of the funniest experiences with the original dvd player was the button to turn it on was on top. The television is a touch screen. I used to walk over touch the tv and then the dvd player before we left to do errands. Macavity recognized my scent and began turning the tv and player on himself. It would come on in the middle of the night basically whenever he wanted it. The little shit would even interrupt my program by pushing the dvd start button. Anyway, a friend was spending the weekend with us and I warned him he might hear the tv in the middle of the night. Not to be concerned it would only be Macavity. He rolled his eyes at me.
Surprise, in the morning he says to me the tv woke him up and when he got up to see he noticed our door was open and we were both in bed. Yeah, the hall light does luminate our room if we don’t shut the door which we typically don’t so our cats have free roam. He came downstairs to investigate and no one was visible so he shut the tv off. He didn’t make it up the stairs and the tv came back on. I burst out laughing. And reminded him that I warned him Macavity liked his tv time.
I’m hoping between the familiarity of riding in the car, the lavender calming collar and the dvd player will make our move a positive experience for all of us. I moved it to the bench so I could use my table. He’s intently watching right now while I write. He hopped down off the bench, grabbed a snack while I was packing and returned to the dvd. Usually, he paces while I pack things. Change isn’t easy for Macavity.
7 days left in April and 30 days in May and this experience ends and our new one begins.
Did you see yesterday Joe Long passed. He’s the second member of the Four Seasons. Tommy DeVito passed last fall. Covid didn’t care that they were talented musicians. I’ve been listening to a lot of oldies while I pack. Like Macavity, I need to be less stressed with this what seems like an insurmountable task.
I saw this yesterday . It reminded me of conversations I had with a dear older friend in Maine. There are still several things I haven’t managed but I will. I’m looking forward to a new beginning.
“A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …. enough money within her control to move out and rent a place of her own even if she never wants to or needs to… A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …. something perfect to wear if the employer or date of her dreams wants to see her in an hour… A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE … a youth she’s content to leave behind…. A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …. a past juicy enough that she’s looking forward to retelling it in her old age…. A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE ….. a set of screwdrivers, a cordless drill, and a black lace bra… A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …. one friend who always makes her laugh… and one who lets her cry… A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …. a good piece of furniture not previously owned by anyone else in her family… A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …. eight matching plates, wine glasses with stems, and a recipe for a meal that will make her guests feel honored… A WOMAN SHOULD HAVE …. a feeling of control over her destiny… EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… how to fall in love without losing herself.. EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… HOW TO QUIT A JOB, BREAK UP WITH A LOVER, AND CONFRONT A FRIEND WITHOUT RUINING THE FRIENDSHIP… EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… when to try harder… and WHEN TO WALK AWAY… EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… that she can’t change the length of her calves, the width of her hips, or the nature of her parents.. EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… that her childhood may not have been perfect…but it’s over… EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… what she would and wouldn’t do for love or more… EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… how to live alone… even if she doesn’t like it… EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… whom she can trust, whom she can’t, and why she shouldn’t take it personally… EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… where to go… be it to her best friend’s kitchen table… or a charming inn in the woods… when her soul needs soothing… EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW… what she can and can’t accomplish in a day… a month…and a year…” ― Pamela Redmond Satran
The original buyer who offered and then withdrew came back into the picture. Contracts are signed, building inspections are scheduled so it looks like we’re moving forward. The proof of occupancy inspection is scheduled. That one amuses me, they charge us sewer, water, and cat licenses in addition to the ridiculous amount of 1000 dollars per month for property taxes now they want another 80.00 to come inside and confirm we live here. Are we having fun yet?
The packing is still happening though a lot has hit Goodwill in this downsizing adventure. Today, after doing a banishing ritual of my mother-in-laws negative energy I packed all of her dishes, and books for Goodwill. I will not have her toxicity in our new home. Exorcism works for me.
For those of you who were blessed with awesome mother-in laws keep in mind there are equally as many if not more that were not. I was not. It breaks my heart how she treats my husband. She left him as a baby, has never developed any maternal instinct and continuously blames him for all of her alleged shortcomings since his birth and when she’s done with that she proceeds with all the things she feels he has failed according to her. It doesn’t matter in her eyes, he will always be a disappointment until she needs something. Which recently was not living alone but since she can’t control where that location is, he’s a failure again. How dare us to want Las Vegas over Edwardsville, Illinois.
Unfortunately, she’s not the only crap surrounding us. Vic and I both have had more than our share. His frustrations has been work related while mine has been someone who feels the need to micro-manage. I realize .. she may think her intentions are good but when the person repeatedly steps on my toes than I tend to get quite grumpy. Her intervention doesn’t change the fact that rules were actually put in place for a reason. There was a lot of discussion involved to establish a good working environment for all but when some one forgets why they’re in place because they’re self absorbed then situations get uncomfortable. This has occurred several times recently and my concerns were brushed aside because someone felt they knew better. Just to be clear they’re not part of the leadership team nor were they part of putting the rules in place so we could avoid situations like we had. I’m not known for being subtle or tactful but I am brutally honest and that does tend to annoy people. My grandmother always said if you can’t say something nice say nothing at all. My grandfather on the other hand said the truth ultimately prevails don’t sugar coat it just spit it out. There are times when both of their advice has prevailed. Last night and sleeping on it did nothing to change my feelings of being micro-managed. I heeded my grandfather’s advice and said it like it. You’ve pissed me off, period.
Apartment shopping is exhausting, I’m thinking right now a tent is looking pretty good. Budget versus actual space needed and still having funds left over to enjoy life. We’re so over robbing Peter to pay Paul. Living in NJ is just to frigging expensive.
I’m happy to say Macavity is getting used to the car, he doesn’t fuss once he is in the car. He even ate treats and drank water. All is left is using the litter box while the car is in motion. I’ve read a lot of people drug their cats but this isn’t a direction I want. I have never drugged my cats, I don’t want to start now especially since Macavity already has a heart condition. Saturday, he snuggled comfortably in my arms and fell asleep. That works for me. We’ll probably snooze a lot on the way to Vegas. Just to be safe, we’ve introduced a calming collar infused with lavender.
I’ve read a lot of different blogs and medical information about drugs and cat interaction. I prefer to continue with the direction we’re on by making traveling a familiar thing, his favorite things and lots of snuggling.
Nor is having a mother-in-law who at first calls your husband because she’s afraid to live alone after three recent visits to the hospital. I totally get that and yes, she’s not getting any younger. It’s not how I saw our lives in our new location. We’ll get two apartments so we can check on her and she still has her independence. Fine, but then she doesn’t want to live in a rental so she wants us to house shop. because she wants us to share a home. Okay after spending hours looking at suitable one story houses she decides that she’s not ready to move yet but we need to be ready. Fine and Dandy, but I don’t want to buy a house and wait for her to change her mind again. I didn’t want the upkeep or the stress of maintenance. And the more I think about it, I don’t want or need the stress involved with living with her. I could go into all the horror stories but I’ll leave it as is with simply she’s difficult. So we’re going with our original plan. Apartment for 2 and a fur baby. We need to do what’s best for us and our health.
The good news is we have a tentative offer on our house pending architectural approval for the sale. The house should pass easily enough so we can finally get to the next step in our lives. Now, I’m looking at apartments, and packing up an eight room house. Goodwill and the V.A. are loving me right now. 1000 books have left our home, three bags of clothing, bookcases, dishes and I’m not done yet.
I’m sorting the boxes as I pack what goes to the apartment and what goes to storage so once we’re there it won’t be chaos.
Anyway, keep your fingers crossed everything goes as anticipated and we get to move in 6 weeks.
Our house has been on the market now 2 weeks with about 15 perspective buyers wandering through our home. One outright said it was to expensive. Well, it is selling for five thousand over the evaluated tax price listed with the town, so I don’t think so. Nor is higher priced than the other three in our development that have recently sold. So get real
We did, especially since we came into this house when the market was higher and paid high for this house. And then ended up syncing 50,000 in here for windows and sliding glass door. No they’re not typical windows, they’re all custom sized bay windows. The worse was the nine foot by four foot in the living room. But price wise the nine foot sliding glass door was close. Can’t change the size because of the Home Owners Association. Never going to live with one of them again. Let’s just says assholes and leave it at that.
We had three others express interest but only one actually made an official offer. Unfortunately, it wasn’t high enough to cover the mortgage and closing costs and leave us with enough to pay for our move. We didn’t expect a high profit margin, truly all we needed was enough to cover the move and make a deposit on a rental. Just in case, you aren’t familiar with closing costs, the state gets a chunk, the town gets a chunk, the realtor and legal fees. All of them together get more than us. It might as well be a short sale but that typically scares buyers away because the mortgage company has the final say. We would be in the same place financially.
Our mortgage company thus far or should I say like it is the investor who scoffed up our mortgage has been a royal pain in the ass. You know he didn’t pay full price for the loan but damn well expects to make a high turn around. If it wouldn’t be such a huge negative credit mark, I’d simply dump it and let them deal with everything. Because right now we’re negative on what we need to cover hiring a moving company and having the security deposit for our next apartment.
Another showing today, maybe a better offer. It’s good Friday, one can hope.
On the brighter note, I’m enjoying how pretty it looks inside since my son John, Debbie and Brian painted it. The house feels so peaceful inside. Outside, the lilies and hostas have all sprouted. The daffodils and hyacinths are in bloom, the tulips are close. My gorgeous rose bushes all have red new growth. I’m going to miss my gardens. 😦
“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” ― Lao Tzu
Monkey bars, swings, see-saws and playground tilt-a-whirls and painted hopscotches all on the pavement at our elementary school. It didn’t take long for me to learn the value of paying attention because when I didn’t… I got all skinned up with some interesting battle scars. All of us at some point, had a few but everyone loved the creative space to be whatever we wanted.
Not all of my classmates were as lucky because my father created an awesome playground at home for my siblings and myself with everything the school had except ours were on the lawn. Slipping or falling wasn’t as painful at home. Recess was always to short so as soon as we got home, we’d play until dinner time.
But then the Parent-Teacher Association decided that the playground equipment was too dangerous so they were all removed and sold off. Recess involved jump rope or dodge ball games. Not as much fun to me. However, that’s when our home became the cool place to hang out for all the neighborhood kids. My father wisely purchased another see-saw, the monkey bars and one more tilt-a-whirl for our increased usage. After school our yard was the place to be until we had to go inside. It irritated my mother that the kids didn’t take the hint and go home. She would shoo them home at dark. We always heard her complaining to our father that someone was going to get hurt out there.
During the summer months we were always at my grandfather’s in Vermont. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop the neighborhood kids from playing at our house. I remember the summer I was eleven coming home to find both tilt-a-whirls broken and a see-saw busted. My father unassembled them and tossed them in the dumpster. No one offered any explanations or apologies for the broken equipment. A couple of the kids complained when they weren’t replaced. One more cruel sign childhood was ending.
I miss the wind whipping my hair back as the tilt-a-whirl spun.
What was your favorite playground equipment piece?
She shivered as she strolled toward the bed of tulips and daffodils blooming in vibrant red and yellow surrounded by bright green grass. The rose bush branches are green again with red tips indicating new growth. The sunshine is deceptively bright but not warm. Spring has sprung but Mother Nature’s orneriness is apparent with warm one day, chilly the next.
There are so many things to do but she’s content sitting here with my computer and the finches tossing thistle everywhere. It’s a good thing the junco’s don’t mind eating from the deck otherwise there would be lots of wasted seed. It’s a wonderful time … seeing everything reborn but then it raises the concern of what is already established.
Looking over at Grandma’s Christmas cactus blooming for Easter this year she’s at loss as what to do with her future. She’s been with her since 1981. Her Grandfather gave the plant to her Grandmother in 1940 for their wedding anniversary. She’s cared for it forty years now with a couple of close scares. Thankfully, for an eighty one year old plant it’s looking mighty fine right now. Will it handle another relocation? The difference in temperatures and water may be a factor like it was initially relocating to Jersey from Maine back in 2007.
She stockpiled up on well water and gradually introduced purified city water to the mix. She learned that the hard way when the cactus first came into her care. She wasn’t thrilled with well water at first and our beginning was a bit shaky. And our house was definitely cooler than her Grandmother’s especially during the months without the heat from the woodstove.
The cactus be with her until her death but then what… is the question. There’s also the cactus that Vic gave her when they began living together back in 2004. None of her children are really avid gardeners. At one point, she had hope for Chris but after taking him his cactus plants he had started in Maine to Virginia when she needed to downsize her indoor plants. It was heartbreaking seeing him promptly let them die from neglect. He put them on the front porch of his house. Out of sight, out of mind and they died. She had nurtured them for fifteen years. Grandma’s cactus can’t be trusted with him.
She looked at the millennials or gen y’s (1981-1996) and seeing no interest in tradition or family memories. She’s sorry if she’s labeling the majority, but from what she’s experienced thus far with her interaction, they’re too focused on instant gratification. Her oldest granddaughter can’t see past the Rave concerts and that scene. Some millennials aren’t afraid of being catalysts of change, but others are too busy, while some are galivanting around having soy chai lattes and attending hot yoga. Some give new meaning to the entitlement mentality. Vic’s children are classic examples of you owe me. Generation x (1965-1980) isn’t much better. They’re the misunderstood generation that’s still looking for themselves. Yeah, that describes her children quite well. Each building careers but not positive if it’s what they love. They want more things like the boomer generation but don’t want to be like their parents either. Generation z (1997- 2010) are socially aware, hashtag savvy. Some have a foothold in the government, while others have taken an entrepreneurial stance. Yes, they’re outspoken on their needs but not so much concerned about the boomers or gen x’s. Again, she sees personal gratification without any appreciation of history or tradition. Gen Alpha ( 2011-2025) has had to bear a lot of upheaval with Covid-19. The results aren’t all in as to how well they endured being forced into a virtual learning world, isolated from social interaction.
“There is no creation without tradition; the ‘new’ is an inflection on a preceding form; novelty is always a variation on the past.” -Carlos Fuentes,
So she’s at a loss on what to do to maintain Grandma’s and their cactus’s safe keeping. Or is it simply to much to hope for that someone will nurture and love the plants with their memories.
Grandma’s cactus is the top one and Vic and mine is the lower one up close in the picture.
“Tradition is a guide and not a jailer.”- W. Somerset Maugham
At a glance, it could be easily missed sitting among Grandma’s things. It didn’t sparkle like her prisms or sun catchers did. Nor did it have any unique markings that might tempt a child’s fantasy but it did. Her wild imagination created a different story for the treasure every time she gazed upon it. Why did it have to be on the do not touch shelf? It didn’t look breakable. It didn’t look like it was worth millions but what did her young mind know about grown up things. She longed to tuck it into her backpack. What virtue hides inside. It was a mystery she needed to solve.
The admired paragon sat silently beside a angel cherub holding a feather. There was a miniature glass terrarium with a metal frame that cast colors of the rainbow across the wall every afternoon with the setting sun on the other side of the shelf. It shined pretty but it wasn’t what the little girl wanted to wrap her chubby fingers around. She wanted to know what secrets it held. And besides she could see what was inside unlike the object of her attraction without a latch to open it.
Would her Gram miss it? How much trouble would she be in if she took off the shelf? She studied it from every angle but decided that she couldn’t disappoint her Grandmother by breaking the rule.
“Logic will get you from A to Z; imagination will get you everywhere.”-Albert Einstein
Years later, the paragon of her childhood imagination no longer captivated her because it didn’t hold hidden treasures from a pirate ship. Nor did it have a unique gem from a secret lover. It was simply a box made of dark cherry wood with rounded corners. Why did she foolishly imagine it must be valuable. Not having a latch made a young mind curious, but she was older now and didn’t care.
Time passed and it was forgotten like many other unexplained childhood fascinations.
“You can’t depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus.” -Mark Twain
Until….
She picked up her beloved cat’s ashes from the veterinarian’s office. She opened the box and inside was a dark cherry wooden box. Her childhood fixation was an urn, just like the one she was holding in her hand. Now, she understood why it sat next to the cherub on the do not touch shelf.
She wished more than anything she wasn’t grasping this cherry box in her hand. She would rather be holding her beloved cat.
I tried to imagine it’s story. How did it end up in the Kennebec River up in The Forks, Maine. Why was it lying in just the right place for me to discover it?
Looking at my piece of driftwood, it most likely was a tree branch that dropped into the river in an area where it was tossed around a lot. My reasoning on this is because of the smooth rounded edges. There’s not a burr anywhere. T
I can’t help but wonder if it was happy to be discovered and removed from the chilly water or was it sad. It bet it wasn’t excited to be wood burned with the message fine and dandy on its slender side. Life changed a lot for this piece of wood for sure. Have I given it a better life or a worse one?
Is that man actually our boss the one chewing strands of dental floss I’ve heard of diet fads but he’s really sad soon will be six feet under the moss.
Is that man actually our boss the one chewing strands of dental floss I’ve heard of diet fads but it’s really sad he’s missing out on the applesauce
lyncrain 