Cactus in the Woods

“We have only this moment, sparkling like a star in our hand – and melting like a snowflake.” — Marie B. Ray

Mr. Push-up has yet to appear this year though we’ve had our week of spring.  He and his kin will all reclaim the patio, once the girls are gone. Mr. Push-up is an enormous lizard who constantly does what his name depicts and the ‘girls’ are inquisitive canine toddlers. These are the things I thought of as I packed for our latest adventure.  No, we’re not headed for a group root canal—I just have trepidations; sparkly little dust bunnies of what ifs that hang in my mind like stars on a moonless night.

The truth is, I love adventures as much as I hate leaving home. What a paradox. And it’s not like we haven’t camped in the area for thirty years. But now we’ve purchased a home in the woods, a summer home, with an adequate yard for the girls and ample room for friends and loved ones. This will be a blast! We’ll be out of the brutal desert heat, near tons of lakes for fishing and close (enough) to bookstores.  I got this! I think. But will a cactus still grow in the woods?

 

Here’s an excerpt from my first journal entry at the summer place, earlier this month:

Patches of December snow still remained on the ground as roof edges dripped in thin silvery waterfalls at midday. A squirrel I’ve named Roger knew we were here immediately and kept up constant surveillance from a tree branch that looks right into the dining room as we unloaded boxes. I’ll have to feed him out front, once the girls get here. Can the fireplace possibly warm this entire cabin?

Turns out, a steaming mug of coffee in my hands on a more than chilly pre-spring morning was splendid! Perhaps next time I’ll take my mug outside; while Roger munches Cheez-its.  And once the snow melts, I plan to check out the haunted forest that everyone speaks about in whispers.

In the meantime folks, I’m just about ready for the 7^th annual April A-ZChallenge, are you?

Have you ever felt displaced? Do you like adventures? Do you have one (adventure) planned for this summer?

A Midnight Kiss and Tell

As feathery soft and wet as a gentle wave; she’s kissed me again, at midnight. I do believe the dog suffers incontinence. Or severe anxiety. I fumble around for my left slipper, knowing she will have already absconded with the right one; which I’ll find in her bed, downstairs.  On the other hand, her tranquil sister couldn’t be persuaded to leave her bed with a side of beef, until breakfast. 

But we love our pets, don’t we? The positive effects of pet ownership on humans are seemingly endless and extremely well documented, even as they romp merrily into your home and settle into your heart before you can say you’re not a pet person. Has that ever happened to you?

 

Of the dozens of dogs and cats (and a tortoise) we’ve had over the years, the most difficult pets have been a parakeet who didn’t like his new roommate (yours truly) any more than I did, a peacock who wouldn’t come down from the telephone pole (just about anything scared him up there) and 21 head of cattle who could hide in plain sight or wreak havoc on an impromptu picnic when one gets his horns stuck in an old tire; alarming the herd into an all-out stampede. But calves are as sweet as any baby and my Herbie was no different in that respect :-)

Have you ever had a difficult pet?

And now for the Tell; the big reveal, I’m announcing my theme for the 7^th annual Blogging A-Z Challenge as “Friends of the Famous”.  You may have guessed it involves animals, but time will tell who’s who ;-)

Surf on over to Tossing it Out for a complete list of participants, and sign up if you care to join in the fun of daily blogging for the month of April!

Idiom Gluttony

Good Morning, all!  The creative marvels over at Elephant’s Child have once again delivered the goods with Wednesday Words!  Be sure to check it out – but first, here’s my take:

Hello there! Pull up a chair; take a load off and lend me your ear. The beans I’m about to spill may make you keel over but it won’t do to beat around the bush. It was in the cards, you know. Sitting on the fence was never going to seal the deal, and though a few did throw in the towel, most weren’t inclined to jump ship and now it’s been set in stone: donkeys can sleep in bathtubs! There, there now, it makes no sense to cry over spilt milk.  And before you go off half-cocked beware the ides of March who would have you seeking any port in a storm just to bury your head in the sand. Well, that’s it in a nutshell, and I’d like you to keep this under your hat please, don’t let on you heard it straight from the horse’s mouth.

Care to give it a try? Have you ever been bowled over by inspiration? Do you keep all your eggs in one basket?