February 2019 – FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER!

The Bleeping Contractor’s Assistant

February 22, 2019February 22, 2019 Posted in chiropractor, contractor, humor, memoir, worsts1 Comment

The woman who works for me one day a week also works for my contractor. It’s actually how I found him. Here’s the problem. She/they keep moving my stuff around. Anyone who has ever done a kitchen knows what I mean. First they need to get out the sliding glass door to cut pipe. Never… Continue reading The Bleeping Contractor’s Assistant

Border Collies 2, Geese 0

February 21, 2019February 20, 2019 Posted in border collie, California, dogs, family, golf course, pet, pet death, relationshipsLeave a comment

(in honor of Tru, who died last week at the age of sixteen) She named you Tru. You are a member of the smartest dog breed on the planet, one that performs in sheep-herding trials, one that needs to work every day because you are so intelligent. You are happy to get into a golf… Continue reading Border Collies 2, Geese 0

The Red-tailed Hawk and the Toddler Fence

February 20, 2019February 20, 2019 Posted in birds, California, children, humor, hunting, Lindsay Wildlife Museum, memoir, Mount Diablo State Park, nature, outdoors, relationships, toddler, worst1 Comment

I am a bird lover. I feed the song birds and the finches. I have an ongoing water supply in the form of a fountain in my back yard. I’ve planted native plants for the hummingbirds. When I hike, I am thrilled to find a hawk feather to add to my hat. Twenty-odd years ago,… Continue reading The Red-tailed Hawk and the Toddler Fence

The Late Winter Blues

February 19, 2019February 19, 2019 Posted in Bay Area, best, California, dancing, Facebook, friends, live music, memoir, nature, picnic, reflux disease, relationships, summer, worstLeave a comment

+ Hail, thunder, sunset, a rainbow. It all happened Sunday afternoon within five minutes of one another. Monday brought polar weather to my California town. It’s the second half of February. I am ready for winter to be done. True, we haven’t had snow, except that one day. We rarely have ice, but this morning… Continue reading The Late Winter Blues

Snow Day

February 18, 2019February 18, 2019 Posted in babies, birthday, California, children, estate sale, Etsy, family, friends, gardening, greenbelt, holiday weekend, holidays, humor, internet, memoir, military, relationships, retirement community, snow, TahoeLeave a comment

Many of my Medicare friends are moving or contemplating moving to retirement communities. A big one close to my town is called Rossmoor. It’s a huge gated community built back in the sixties and contains 6700 residential units surrounded by open space. At least one resident in each unit must be at least fifty-five years… Continue reading Snow Day

Pavlov’s Perfume

February 17, 2019February 17, 2019 Posted in animal adoption, animal rescue, animal shelter, ARF, Belgian Malinois, California, dogs, Houdini, humor, Jack Russell terrier, memoir, Pavlov, pet, relationships2 Comments

My girlfriend, who shall remain nameless, lest someone recognize her on this page, has a three-time rescue dog like me. Hers also started out as a voluntary surrender puppy after his owner first lost a home in the Redding fire. Or possibly he was at the Redding shelter and got shipped out to make room… Continue reading Pavlov’s Perfume

A Donner Party Winter

February 16, 2019February 16, 2019 Posted in Donner party, Donner Summit Museum, Hastings Cut-off, history, pioneers, Sierra Nevadas, survival, Tahoe, winterLeave a comment

Lake Tahoe has had record-breaking snowfall this year. Snow is falling so fast that the ski resorts have had to close some days because of the chance of avalanches. When was the last time Tahoe has seen this much snow? I am not a meteorologist, but one equally snowy year comes to mind. That would… Continue reading A Donner Party Winter

FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER!

Susan Elya

Month: February 2019