March....Family....7th Week...and New Stuff

 

Woke to 40 degrees and the sound of Spring birds!

Next week promises 60 and 70 degree days...and the beginning of clearing the pots and borders...soon to start planting and such.

 Needless to say...I'm thrilled.

...so is the Tux-Cat...

A last bit of snow...and it may be over.

                                                           "...nope..."

Last Saturday was wonderful! The house filled with family...sons...daughter-in-laws...grands...happy chaos!!!

 
And Lachlan passed around like champagne. 

Such a smiley baby!!!!

Tux...who loves people...spent most of the afternoon just winding himself around everyone and getting played with/loved on.

And we've all needed some happy chaos...

Because the last 7 weeks

...how can it only be 7 weeks???? 

has been complete and utter chaos.

Tariffs on...tariffs off...you're fired...you're not fired...five things you've accomplished...you don't have to answer that e-mail...oh yes, you do...and on and on.

MAGA is slowly realizing that except for their votes...he doesn't care about them.

...that has to sting...

So many fired...wanting to cut Medicaid and food stamps...wanting to dismantle NOAA and FEMA...

YEAH. 

And it has only been 7 weeks.

Only 45.5 months to go.

...dear god...

A bunch of new stuff out now.

Arby's has come up with a fish sandwich on King's Hawaiian Bread.

  ...which looks and sounds much better than it tastes...trust me...

 and their new Andes Mint Shake

 ...which is as good as the fish is bad...

Try them yourself!!!

Have a Wonderful Weekend!

Love,

Carla & Tux

 

Touching Grass...and Valentine's Day!

 

Sometimes...when you are up to your ass in alligators...it is hard to remember you're there to drain the swamp... 

The last few weeks I've been letting Trump and his Boy-Sidekick (Musk) eat my brain.

Even though I swore I was not going to let that happen.

What did it get me?

Sleepless nights...general grumpiness...feeling overwhelmed and this lovely stress (cold) sore on the right side of my mouth.

...I know...bleah...

Am trying hard to reset over the next few days.

Touching Grass.

...not literally...mine being buried by snow currently... 

Amidst all the chaos and insanity, John and I had a lovely Valentine's Day with heart-shaped pizza and jalapeno poppers and coffee, cards, dark chocolate cocoa and so much chocolate...and stuff for the cats, of course...and even a small cat-nap together.

It was wonderful!

How perfect to share the day reserved for love...with someone you love.

And how easy it is to take that (and so many other things for granted).

Waking up.

A good night's sleep.

Not hurting.

Loving and being loved.

Tux purring himself to sleep on top on me...then falling into that deep sleep where he snores.

Watching his ears, whiskers and paws twitch while he dreams.

A delicious meal.

The return of warmth, the light, and soon Spring!

And a million other moments.

Got to stay focused on these!!!!

love,

Carla

 

One Month...

 

Yeah...it has been 84 years...

 

Well, it feels that way, anyway.

 

Hard...no...impossible to believe it has only been one month.

I think I speak for most of us, when I say we are just exhausted.

So much chaos, and lying and destruction in 30 days. 

 

Freezing funds...court battles...firings...in some (oops) cases re-hirings...verbal attacks on our allies...the whole Panama Canal, Canada, Greenland business...cuts to Medicaid...EBT...siding with Russia...filling his cabinet with incompetents...donors and Fox News Hosts...and I could go on and on.

So tired.

 

Already.

 

And make no mistake about it...that is what is is designed to do.  Exhaust us. Wear us down. Make us comply...or become apathetic...or give up.

Which is exactly why we cannot.

Be tired. Rest. Then return to resist.

I think it is apparent that no one is coming to save us.

So, we must save ourselves, and our Country.

Take care of ourselves...and others.

This, too, shall pass.

In this case in only 47 more months.

Love,

Carla

 

This is today's stock market drop

 

 

So much winning.

Taking a break...need to touch grass.

 

Trump-Free Weekend....Superbowl Sunday...and How About Those Eagles!

 

Okay...so Kansas is my team...but damn!

Face it...we were completely outplayed last night...and the right team won.

There were mistakes on both sides...but throughout The Eagles were a well-oiled machine!

We made Barkley get the smallest number of yards he has gotten all season...and some great stops.

They squished Mahomes at least 5 or 6 times...smashed him flat.

When the dust cleared our chances for a three-peat were gone and Hurts and crew had The Lombardi.

 

...now football is over for seven weeks...

 Took a Trump-Free Weekend and am now looking cautiously around at the newest damage...

Yeah...it's kind of like that.

It seems the orange fellow did go to the Superbowl...but left early on.

...my eternal thanks to Tubi for giving him zero air time...

During which he made the decision to exact 25% tariffs on aluminum and steel...and discontinue minting pennies.

...yeah..

So...here we are.

We now have bird flu in 5 different sites in Indiana and many others in the surrounding states.

The jump from human-to-human is not IF but WHEN.

...and they won't be able to disregard it like Covid...because this has a 50% mortality rate...

There is no cure or vaccine at this time.

 

More as it comes...

Love,

Carla

February...Groundhog's Day...Two Weeks in...

 

And it is...

and Spring is on the horizon!

The rodent says More Winter...but today is in the mid-50's and tomorrow promises to be 60 or over.

My Tux-Cat is always on the wrong side of the door now, and I spend inordinate amounts of time on door-opening duties.

I am regaining my strength from being down sick for so long.

Starting to get the house pulled back together...including taking down Christmas Decorations and the tree,  which was nice.

And then there was the Philodendron.

"Phil" and I have a tenacious relationship, anyway.

...It is more like S&M...John helpfully adds...

"Phil" I water....well...when I remember to.

Not often enough.

"Phil" was a rescue, from my friend Ola, several years back.  Cute. In a six inch pot.

When I think of houseplants for inside decor I immediately think of silk or plastic.

 "Phil" is neither.  

And he has grown...from a tiny cute potted plant to taking over half of my coffee table. Where he sits patiently...probably wondering when/if I will ever water him again.

Sometimes he expresses his disappointment with my lackadaisical watering by drooping sadly and dropping yellowing leaves.

Then I was sick...for a long long long time.

When I noticed "Phil" after a month and a half...well

...He's dead, Jim....

Listless, yellow drooping...a bit like me, at that point.

I watered him soundly...but didn't expect much.

Today, he is back to being green, perky...and you would never know.

...and John and I have re-named him Lazarus...

 

A morbid fascination with the last two weeks with Trump...and the EO's...and cabinet confirmation hearings. 

Which is going about how you would expect, at this point.

The first few days spent signing executive orders faster than a Las Vegas hooker turns tricks.

Constitutional/Unconstitutional...he doesn't know or care.

Sign them all...let judges sort them out.

And slapping tariffs on most everyone.

...you know what tariffs are???? Taxes for stupid people...

When all the prices go up...and they will...and inflation rises...and the already  diminishing stock market drops even further...well I want to make sure MAGA knows this is what they voted for....okay??

 

Only 206 weeks left.

Jesus Wept.

Right now, my main concern is this guy...

Doesn't he look like someone who needs to head up our health services???

RFK JR. is an avowed anti-vaxxer...who doesn't trust vaccines...but shot up heroin for 14 years...

...make it make sense...

With bird flu all around us and Marburg killing people in Tanzania...this isn't the time...okay?

For those who need to hear it...Canada is NOT going to be our 51st state...Denmark is NOT going to sell Greenland...and I doubt seriously that we are going to take the Panama Canal...Products are going to get high prices...Inflation is going to increase...the stock market will probably tank...

And the rest of us...we will survive.

We will.

love,

Carla, John and the Cats!

"Just going to hide in here until it is over."

                                                              Gadget

Sisters Day...Eagles-Chiefs SB...and One Week

 

So...Tina did a thing...

Introducing Charlotte!

When she is a little bigger she is going to bring her out to visit Tux.

We had our first official (just us) Sisters Day since Lisa's death.

Got a bottle of the chocolate wine she introduced us to...and drank a toast to her...and talked and worked through some of our feelings of loss. 

Chad bought a flowering crab-apple and planted it.

It will bloom every year on/near her birthday.

We miss her.

Chris brought Lachlan over Sunday.

What a happy baby.

Over 20 pounds now...one tooth started...crawling and pulling up to a stand!

Looks just like his dad at this age.

And John and I watched the Bills-Chiefs Game.

Allen and Mahomes are so well matched...it is always anybody's game.

Last night Josh Allen threw a Hail-Mary pass in the 2 minute zone...and instead of the TE catching it and making a winning TD...

...he dropped the ball...

He. Dropped. The. Fucking. Ball.

Ending The Bills Season, and so we have an Eagles-Chiefs SB!!!

This may be our chance for a three-peat!

So excited!!!

Well...we are one week into Trump's second term...and predictably it's a shit-show.

MAGAts:  "You lost."

Me: "And you lost, too.  You're just too stupid to know it, yet."

~sigh~

We're going to need more popcorn.

Love,

Carla

2025...Healed....The Mess...Rejoining LIFE...And the Playoffs!

 

...and I've survived.

     It is 3 degrees out today. My goals include keeping the house warm...good food...and a nap with Tux.

And maybe work on the clutter and mess that comes from being really sick for a month, because

DAMN!

Feels good to feel good again, though...and making plans with everybody after mid-week (and a bath).

Teams winnowed down to only a handful remaining.

 

The Chiefs

The Bills

The Eagles

and The Commanders.

 

Watched the upset over the Lions...which was unexpected and quite the game.

Also last night as Josh Allen (who just gets better and better) bested The Ravens in a hard won game.

Our match-up with the Bills,as always, has me more than a little nervous.

But here we are...

The goals fairly simple this year.

IF you would have asked a couple weeks ago...it would have been distilled to a single word-

SURVIVE

Today it seems less...er...fatalistic.

And, therefore, replaced with-

THRIVE

Keep everything paid up...continue declutter and downsize...get back to painting...cooking and writing and photography and gardening.

Virtual Travel...I think Greece is calling!!!

...and all that lovely Greek Food....
 

More friend, John, and family time.

Less stress.

That is about it.

Did manage to get indoor plumbin' for the Tux-Cat before the below 0 temps came...which after several accidents he managed to grasp.

"But...I'm not suppose to shit in the house...okay....but only in this sandbox...."

I SEE YOU...

Off soon, to clean house and make lunch and then get a nap with the cat!

Love,

Carla & Tux

President Biden has freed Leonard Peltier!

 

James is 38...I am Closer to Well...and Wildcard is Winding Down

 

With Kansas and Detroit at the top of their divisions...

James turned 38 on the 8th!!!

Although, it may be next week until I can celebrate with him.

Finally starting to beat this respiratory crap and the coughing is lessening...which is nice.

So weak.

Can't even pick my cat up, right now.

Tire out quickly...but know this is temporary.

Tonight finishes off the Wild Cards with the Rams and Vikings.

Some great teams in the playoffs this year!

Right now it is just cleaning up a bit at a time...food and football...sleeping a lot.

But it is getting better, I think.

 

Love,

Carla

(...the recovering...)

2025 and STILL Alive...

 A little bit like this today...

And who is going to clean up this mess????

Rough end to December and beginning of the New Year. Was sick for about 3 weeks with a bit of everything.

Began with congestion and sinusitis...continued with Covid...ran into a brief hospitalization and then acute viral bronchitis...which gave way to the beginnings of what appeared to be bacterial bronchial pneumonia.

Today, I am Covid negative, still coughing like mad but the fever is gone, Z-packed until next Thursday...shaky...in desperate need of a hot bath...but despite my respiratory system's attempts to kill me off...

STILL HERE.

...and there were several days of wondering if this was how it ends...

Slowly getting better.

It's a process.

Hungry, again...

Instacart and Walmart deliveries...and easy one pot soups and meals.

No energy, yet.

Everyone, except the cats, got screwed for Christmas.

I'm sorry. I'll try to make it up during the year.

Slow today...waiting for Walmart to deliver...and so much clean up here to do.

But it feels good to wake up after weeks and even feel slightly better.

Soup and the ball game tonight...and a couple tomorrow...we have snow and bitterly cold weather coming in...so I'll be hibernating with Tux for a while.

Love Everybody!

Carla

...the germy...