Post-Thanksgiving

Last year, Thanksgiving was nice.

Sheena and her boyfriend were here.

Katharine, Don, and Ana came down from LA.

We played with the rabbit and with Aki.

Bristow was stuck in a neighbor's basement.

Booth was still down at Sheena's apartment.

Mom cooked most of the dinner.

It was nice.

Sheena and I cooked this year, from Bobby Flay's Bar Americain cookbook.

It was great! Almost all of the food got eaten! We had some trouble keeping Mom out of the kitchen and out of our hair.

Clean up was easy. Ian helped with the glasses.

Mom talked about the rent for the LA apartments.

Katharine, Don, and Ana left right after the family picture.

They might be traveling for Christmas.

Therapy trip

Today, they go to therapy together. I hope it goes well.
I'll reserve judgement until I see the after-effects.

I don't enjoy being this cynical, but it's a difficult thing to break out of, when one's hopes and aspirations have been so squashed.

Negativity

I don't want this to be a gripe page.

Not Home

Alright, it's bad.

Before, it was just not good. Now, it's bad.

We're not at home when we're home.
It's not our home. It's theirs.
That's been made ever-increasingly, abundantly clear.

Nothing is ever okay.
It's just varying degrees of tolerable.

Waiting for the other shoe to drop.
Waiting for the next mistake, or complaint, or scolding.

It's bad.

The Job (part 2)

Still not sure I want this.
A job is a job is a job, I know.
But, if I really hate it...

The Job

I can do The Job.
I can be good at The Job.
But it's only a job.

The question is:
Can I do this job without hating it?
Can I do this job in good conscience?
Will I be able to look at myself in the mirror?

As I've been reminded, I don't have to make a lifetime commitment.
I can keep working toward something else.
Something better. Something fulfilling.
Something To be proud of.

Ambivalence

How does one decide what they really want to do in life?
I mean, how does one know?

Without experience, I can't make informed decisions.
But I have to make decisions about paths to take, to get experience.
At what point should I give up and just go with the "logical" course?

When is it time to abandon the pursuit of a dream?

A new Month

July.

It's hot. It's halfway through the year.
Half the year gone, but still have half left.

Six months to do what we can this year.
Six months, and then another year will be past.

Six months to live through.
Six months to live with.
Six months to live for.

The drawing board

The expression is: "Back to the drawing board."
Meaning: well, so much for that.
And then, start over, with either
a different approach or a different endeavor.

Begin again. Again.

My Fair Lady

It seemed like a simple inquiry, I'm sure.

What would be entailed in making a dress like this? Can you do it?
Well...yes. I can. Will I? There's the more important question.

And are you willing to pay what it's worth?

Water Sports

Who says cats don't like water?

This one does.
Not a bath, or any other form of soaking,
but a little scamper through the lawn sprinklers is quite nice!

And when the hose is on, lots of fun!
Surveillance, stalking. Dodging and darting.
Ahh, the intrigue!
The challenge and exhilaration!

This cat loves the water!

Springtime

Finally, a day without wind!

So many days of wind, I thought I'd lose my mind!
Mama likes it, but I can't stand it!

Lots of birds out to chase around.
Mice too. They're my favorite.

Off to the mousing!

The wind

It was a windy day. Morning, afternoon and evening...all windy.
I hate the wind! It gets me all ruffly and static charged. My hair all stands up and crackles.
The wind blows dirt and leaves and branches all over the yard. It's a mess! Most of all, it messes with my nose.
I can't smell anything correctly in the wind. Everything's all mixed up together.

I hate the wind!