Saturday thoughts...

I found this pic on the internet, but DH actually saw a white crow one day when he was pulling in the drive. I watched for days, but if it was there, it never came back. I believe that any creature can be born albino. It's just rare and I'm not sure how well they're accepted. 

I googled it and read that they are extremely rare and occur only 1 in 30,000 to 100,000 births. It is due to a genetic mutation that prevents melanin production. Sadly it also said that it can impact the bird's ability to find a mate and also harm their eyesight.

And... in some native American tribes a white crow sighting signifies a great blessing.

We have 6-8  black crows that come by every morning and evening for peanuts and Cheetos. The other day we came home from an errand and they were all over the trees cawing... like "They're home! They're home!". It was only about 3 o'clock and not actually feeding time... but I went out and threw them a few Cheetos. They were down on the lawn before I even got back in the house.

And observing them, it's possible that they come from different groups as one can be fine feeding close to some, but chases others off or is chased off himself. I raised and bred English Budgies and Zebra Finches years ago and it was fascinating to watch their interaction. Seems like these crows also have a pecking order.

OK... just wanted to share about the white crow. Didn't mean to go on and on. 

If you're still with me, I'll talk about something else... although it's not terribly exciting either. I've been baking a lot lately. Sent teacakes and home-made nutty granola to a friend last week. She was having some down days and thought it might perk her up.

And now making espresso shortbread and pralines to add to my oldest granddaughter's care package for her birthday this coming week.

espresso shortbread cookies
with dark chocolate centers

Also wearing my back brace today as lately my lower back is acting up when I get out of bed. It acts like one wrong move and it'll freeze up on me. But once I'm up and moving about (albeit very slowly at first), it seems to loosen up and be OK. (Just another sign of age, I'm sure).

And remember that Halloween is coming - so please keep your inside cats in - and possibly create a safe yard for the outside ferals.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

(For those interested, eye is healing and seems to be doing OK... but still the possibility of a 3rd surgery looms.)

just a few thoughts...

I was texting this morning with a friend that has a lot going on in her personal life these days. And we were discussing how worrying about it doesn't help... and that we need to find little things that bring us joy. 

And I happened to look up at my cat calendar hanging on the wall above my desk... and smiled.  Gary Patterson makes these and I find them adorable. They make me smile, so I thought I'd share a few with you.

 

This last one is my favorite!

I know this is a post without much content. But if it made you smile, then I'm happy. 

On a more serious note, I want to share a few pics I came across of Jane Goodall:

May she rest in peace... her life made a difference.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

October 1, 2025 Rabbit! Rabbit! White Rabbit!

Rabbit! Rabbit! White Rabbit!

October is here... and I'm so-oo glad! 

Although it's still pretty hot here in Texas,  

I know it should start to feel like Fall soon.

 Here's wishing everyone a happy healthy safe Fall Season!

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

 

Today is a good day...

Just wanted to say that today is a good day! I can see again out of my left eye... still blurry, but I'll take it. It's only day 3.  2nd plastic surgery was Friday morning. Scary day with an urgent return to doctor's office after being released from surgical center (will go into that later). But... Saturday was better and so on. 

The 2nd surgery itself didn't take long. When in recovery room, I opened the eye that had been stitched closed for 5 weeks and I could see 'shadows of people'. Then as time went on while still there, I could see as if I was looking at things through blurry water. 

After home for about an hour, I was watching TV when suddenly the TV was doubled, my vision  became double vision... which was scary and also made me a bit nauseous. 

So we went back to see the doctor and I was told that when this happened he believed it was due to weakened muscles in the eye from either the anesthesia or the numbing agents (or the fact that the eye was stitched closed for so long - my reasoning). It should go away in a few minutes, hours, or days. He patched it closed for the day and told me to remove the patch in the morning and start the healing treatments. 

The next morning when I removed the patch, my vision was blurry, but normal. And so it goes...

The only thing I haven't mentioned is that when he told me that he believed the double vision was due to weakened eye muscles, he also said it could be due to a stroke (yes, that certainly upped my bp!) I was like, "What??". Then he said that he didn't think it was that as I wasn't showing any neurological signs. I asked "what are the signs?" And he said, "headache, weakness, etc."  I said, "No... (although I had just come off anesthesia and was feeling a bit weak). 

Anyway, patching up the eye for the night seemed to have done the trick. I see him again later this week and we'll go from there. If any of you out there watch Doc Martin on TV, this doc is a little like him... very good, but a bit abrasive. At  one point when I was telling him what was happening, he said, "Stop talking! I'm trying to examine you."(Doc Martin, right?)

Closing this with some pics that made me think of recent dreams. The last few nights this week I have dreamt of our cats (long gone).

The first was of a white cat (Betsy) we had when the kids were toddlers. I was standing in the door of a house looking out. Betsy was there on the patio drinking water. A few feet from her laying down was a mountain lion. I panicked for a second, knowing that if I called her, I would make both of them aware. In the short time that passed, Betsy simply stopped drinking and walked into the house. Dream over. I've dreamt of our cats off and on through the years, but this was the first time I ever dreamt of Betsy.

The second dream was of Ghost... one of our cats that passed away at the beginning of the pandemic. She was 15. Anyway, the dream was short, but wonderful! I actually got to pet her and she rolled over on her back and I could 'hear and feel her purring'! (My dreams are usually pictures, not much conversation, and not much 'feeling'). This was so-o different. It was wonderful and made me wake up happy.

I know many of you may think me crazy... but these are the things that make me believe that love never ends. 

Going to close this now as my left eye doesn't like the lap top light (even though I've lowered it quite a bit). I'll continue my updates later in the week. Thanks for reading. Hope it wasn't TMI.

Hugs,

Rian

 

Life goes on... but still in the 90's here

My daughter sent me these -  pictures of her Fall Table Setting and her Fall Fireplace. She decorates for almost every holiday and usually starts early. I told her that my Easter bunny decor is still out... and I think that I will just add a few pumpkins to it for Fall and Thanksgiving.

The blue/lavender plates in the center are part of a 4-piece tea set that we gave to DH's mom at one time. When she passed, it came back to me... and I passed it on to my daughter. It's a beautiful set, called Royal Albert's Moonlight Rose. It's the blue/lavender set similar to Royal Albert's Old Country Roses which are in red/gold. Here's a pic of the teapot, etc.

Now on to Shadow, the feral cat that still comes by to eat or sleep in our backyard. Here is a picture of him eating alongside one of the box turtles.

The funny story DH tells me is that he put out some leftover chicken  for Shadow and the turtle must have smelled it, as he came over and stuck his head in the dish (under Shadow's nose) and took a piece!

Life goes on here... my next plastic surgery is this week. Not looking forward to it, but also want it done and over (hopefully). 

Going to share 2 more things here that are very different. But it's all I've got at the moment.  One is a picture of my Ice-box Lemon pie I made last week. It is so-oo good. Made with lemon curd, condensed milk and whipping cream (how could it not be good?) It's my next favorite to my dark chocolate pie (made with bourbon whipped cream as a topping). If I posted a pic of this before, please forgive me (memory isn't always great).

This other share is a spiritual one. It's just one of my favorite quotes from C.S. Lewis' book, Mere Christianity. I don't read religious books much, but this one I liked. The quote that stayed with me all these years was:

"What can you ever know of other people's souls - of their  temptations, their opportunities, their struggles? One soul in the whole of creation you do know: and it is the only one whose fate is placed in your hands. If there is a God, you are, in a sense alone with Him."

And I will leave you with this. My time and attention has been taken up with this eye situation and getting by with this eye stitched closed, so I've not been paying much attention to the political atmosphere. I get a little here and there from DH or my iPhone... but there is another quote that seems appropriate here (yes, I like quotes and seem to remember the ones that speak to me). 

"Sufficient for the day is the evil thereof" - meaning don't worry about future problems. Take it a day at a time. I'm trying...

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

Old age and sleeping/dreaming...

 

me and Gigi napping (years ago)

You'll have to excuse the 'old' pic, but I don't have any recent ones of me sleeping. This was taken years ago when Gigi and I would nap together on the sofa. Anyway, last night I was thinking about how many of my family and friends have trouble sleeping. I wonder if this is just an age-related problem or does it have to do with the stress of the times or has it always been this way?

I actually sleep fairly well myself. Go to bed around 10 pm, read for an hour or so, and then sleep until around 7 or 7:30 in the morning (with 2-3 bathroom breaks during the night of course). DH pretty much does the same (except that he doesn't read - just falls asleep pretty quickly). He gets up around 7:30 am 2 days to get the garbage out before the garbage man comes at 8 (comes at 8 'sometimes' - but if you don't get it out, he's sure to come early - so we call it his 'beat the garbage man mornings'). I usually stay in bed dozing or thinking about things until 8. Then up for coffee/tea... (or sometimes DH brings me coffee/tea in bed!)

I also have an Amazfit Band 7 watch that is connected to my phone that keeps tract of sleep. It tells me how long I slept, times I was awake, how much was deep sleep, my heart rate during sleep, and hypopnea times/hour. Then it tells me my steps during the night and gives me a score. I usually score in the 80's and 90's - a few in the 70's occasionally. 

And of course there are some nights (not many, but some - I call these my 'dark nights of the soul') when my mind is too busy to shut down and I wake up in the wee hours. Generally I make myself a cup of tea and either play with my Animal Crossing game or write lists of things to do the next day. Then return to bed and usually sleep until 8. 

Two of my friends have trouble sleeping. Both are my age or close. One has had trouble for years and years. She hardly ever slept. Don't know how she did it. But now her doctor has found something that works for her... thank goodness, she now can sleep. The other has pain problems as well as restless leg syndrome. She is up and down a lot during the night. 

Younger people I know have trouble also. One only sleeps maybe 4 hours a night and has to have a couple of beers before bedtime. Another goes to sleep quickly, but wakes up within a few hours and can't go back. Both of these people have a lot of stress in their lives, jobwise or personal. That leads me to believe that STRESS is one of the main causes of trouble sleeping - maybe for everyone. 

What do you think? Do you sleep well at night? I've always believed that good sleep was very important as that is the time our body rests and recoups, does repairs, and boosts our immune system. 

Also, do you dream? I used to dream long lucid dreams that I remembered in the morning and enjoyed. Nowadays I hardly remember what I dreamt... and when I do, they're short, confusing, often confrontational... things I would never do or say when awake. 

Just curious, but do you have trouble sleeping? And do you dream? If so, do you remember your dream?

Just sharing my thoughts here. Would love to know yours...

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

(question: is this type size too small? This is medium. But I've been using large lately and looking back, it may be too big?)

Hanging in here... and trying to stay busy

 

Not complaining... really, just putting my thoughts down. This having my left eye stitched closed is weird, scary, and uncomfortable. It doesn't hurt... aches a little on occasion, itches sometimes, but is just plain a nuisance. 

It's been a little over 2 weeks since the Mohs and the plastic surgery - and 3 weeks until the next surgery (where I believe they will take the stitches out and allow my eye to open again - I hope ). I actually have an appointment this coming Thursday to be checked over and talk about what's next.  

I know there are worse things... and I keep telling myself to be thankful to have had the basal cell carcinoma removed. And that I can still see out of my right eye during this time.  I also know that this too will pass. But in my mind, it's just taking too long...

I guess I just thought there would be a surgery and then it would be stitched up and that would be it. Apparently not.

If I'm going to get through another 3 weeks, I'm going to have to keep busy to keep my mind off of this situation. Can't sketch - my perception is too messed up. But I can read (thank goodness for kindle on my phone where I can enlarge the print), can binge watch Netflix,  and I can bake! 

Today I baked Halloween cookies... a little early I know, but I don't have any "Fall" cookie cutters (maybe I should look for 'leaves'?) Besides, my cousin in N.O. has a birthday coming up and I'm not exactly able to do much shopping, so I may send her cookies.  I could order through Amazon for her (and may still do that), but thought the cookies would be a good back-up plan.

Not a lot else going on around here... daughter sends me pics of Ryder, oldest granddaughter 's Bernese Mountain dog. He is still a puppy (about a year old) and is a sweetie. First pic is of him at home, the second he is on a play-date with his yellow lab friend. They're hanging out by the pool... (a bit spoiled, yes?)

I have been reading a lot lately (actually I always read a lot...). Last book was "Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure" by Rhys Bowen. Enjoyed it, but different from her other spy books. 

Watched "Queen Charlotte" on Netflix. I'm sure that it's not historically accurate... but was definitely interesting. 

Believe it or not, it was in the 60's here Friday morning. Today it's in the 70's! Love it! We are able to get out and walk around the neighborhood a bit. I do miss getting outside... but not when it's in the 90's and triple digits.

That's it... not an exciting read, but it is what it is. If you're still with me, thank you.

This next pic has nothing to do with anything... just made me laugh when I saw it. If you're a cat person, you might appreciate it.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian