Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

 

Ten on the Eleventh

Good morning and Happy Friday!  I for one am especially happy that this day has arrived, for two reasons, which I will discuss later in this post.

Today is March 11, and I want to talk about the number ten.  It's a nice, round number, introducing double digits to the string.  How many lists of "ten" have you come across?  Top Tens are a big one, as are Ten Ways To _______ (for good or for bad).  In a football game, ten yards gets you a first down on your way to the goalpost.  The British Prime Minister lives at 10 Downing Street (as does Larry the Cat!).  Everyone's favorite musical Founding Father - Alexander Hamilton - is on the ten-dollar bill.  One of the first ways we learn to count in groupings is doing five, ten, fifteen, twenty, etc.  

But today, on March 11, 2022, the very best thing about the Number Ten is this:

Milo the Koodle is ten years old today!!

Yep, on this day ten years ago, he was born in one of The Tim's former co-worker's backyard, where she took care of some feral cats.  He had 4 other siblings.  

The Koodle is definitely one of a kind, and honestly I think if just about anyone else had adopted him, he would have quickly been returned to a shelter or left out on the street abaondoned.  Because some of his "unique" features and behaviors are, shall we say ... troublesome.  But The Tim and I decided he was part of our family, and even though it was possible that he was possessed by Satan, we would never give him up.  

It helps that he is a cutie pie, and that when he is not peeing on things or destroying things or shredding your skin, he is a love bug.  He loves to cuddle, he loves to play - needless to say, all on HIS terms.  He and Pip are best buds and occasional mortal enemies.  He adored both Dug the Doodle Dog and Hamlet, and is somewhat lost without them.

But when he sits on your lap and purrs like a truck, or cuddles up next to you when you are lying down, he is the kind of kitty everyone wants to have.

So tonight, we will have birthday cake, treats, and presents to kickoff his birthday weekend. 

The second reason I'm glad that Friday is finally here is because it's the last day I have to be at work for a week!  I had marked next week off as vacation back in November, when our dept at work was still at full staff.  Of course, now that there is just myself and one other person (She The Terrible), my taking a week of vacation is being seen as the equivalent of eating a baby or something.  Now keep in mind that last month, She The Terrible took 2 weeks of vacation, and it was to be commended because she "works so hard."  (And she is the terrible boss' favorite person in the place, next to himself.)  But my vacation week is SUCH a problem, you know???

As my mother would say, TDB (too d**n bad).  I'm planning a week where I do my best to forget all of the people at work, where I don't check e-mail or attend Zoom meetings, and where *they* can be the ones to sign for packages, give directions, answer all of the phones, etc.  

I plan to do whatever I feel like doing on any given day, within reason of course (no stabbing annoying people, etc.).  I have a couple of dr appts, The Tim's days off are on Tuesday and Wednesday, so we'll probably have some adventure then, and there are a couple of days where I have to be at home anyway because some workers are coming to take the ivy off the side of our house, and do some pruning work on some trees in our garden.  

It would be nice if someone contacted me for a job interview, but I'm not gonna count on it.  That would just be a bonus.

So join me today in wishing the Koodle a happy birthday, and have a wonderful weekend doing whatever you are planning to do!

*****

I thought you might enjoy these outtakes from the birthday boy's photoshoot.  They prove that the sweet, innocent face above is as much a ruse as anything else.

*Just* as a snapped the photo!

A typical photo attempt, on any given day not just a birthday!

Nothing Much To Report

Hiya all.  Please don't think I'm ignoring you.  I'm just pretty much keeping to myself lately, and there's not a lot going on that you haven't already heard me discuss.  But on the plus side, at least other than the world being more scary than ever, I guess it's good that things are otherwise quiet.

Before I forget, a big THANK YOU to Vera - last week, she posted a recipe on her blog for Curried Shrimp Chowder, and this past Saturday, I made the vegetarian version (skipping the bacon ingredient and using vegetable stock) and oh is is good!  We had it with some breadsticks that The Tim had made, and it was one of the best meals we've had for a long time.  As she also mentions in the blog post, it makes a lot, so yesterday I had some of the leftovers for lunch.  If you are a shrimp lover, give it a try - you will not be disappointed.

I did not think to take a picture of it until after we finished eating, but it looks as good as it tastes, you'll just have to try it yourself! 😊

On Sunday, for the first time in two years, we went to a live performance.  The Philadelphia Orchestra was doing a concert version of the music from the movie "Fiddler on the Roof" that had been arranged by John Williams.  A group from the music and theater department at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor were playing the roles.  It was so well done and so enjoyable!  Before entering the venue, you had to show proof of vaccination with your driver's license or other ID, and everyone in the audience had to remain masked the whole time.  At first it seemed kind of jarring to be in a place with so many people again, but to be honest, once the performance began, you forgot about everything but what was happening on stage.  Of course, The Tim was especially interested, since in college he played the part of the butcher Lazer Wolf.  And honestly, where just about any musical is concerned, if someone is sick at the last minute and the understudy is also sick, either one of us could fill in ... not well, but we know all of the lyrics! 😜

That's really all I have to tell you about at the moment.  Have a good day, and take care.

Meanwhile, I hope this will give you a reason to chuckle today:

March? Yes, March!

This is ridiculous, but it still made me laugh out loud:

And then on Friday, we will be told to March Fo[u]rth! 😂

"Orders" aside, it is the first day of March, and therefore, the start of one of my most favorite months of the year.  Just off the top of my head, we have:

Milo the Koodle's birthday

My birthday

St. Patrick's Day

St. Joseph's Day (which  means - ZEPPOLES!)

First day of spring

Two other family birthdays

As well as the Ides of March, but I'm not really sure that's a celebratory day (unless maybe something would happen to a sworn enemy and it just so happened on that day, but really what are the chances??).

It would be nice if some other things I wish would happen would decide to show up in March, but at least I have enough already to keep me going.

It would also be nice if during this month (hopefully sooner rather than later), Ukraine would be left to be the independent nation it is and should be.

I hope all of you have a good month, whether or not anything extra is happening.

*****

kayT asked in the comments of my post about what I learned in February, what I thought the definition was of a "foundling."  I always thought a foundling was a child "found"  - on the doorstep of somewhere, like a house or an orphanage, and/or was either abandoned or an orphan in the first place.  In the book I recently read, the Foundling Hospital in London was for illegitimate children whose parents wanted to avoid the shame. There was even an application process to be accepted, and those who were not accepted ended up most of the time living on the streets, or dying when abandoned as babies.  If they were accepted, the parent(s) had an appointment for when to drop off the child, and they signed papers, and received a "receipt."  So although that may not have survived as the overall definition of the word, that was the original concept for the Foundling Hospital.

*****

So there you go.  Enjoy your day, and remember - March First! 😂😂

Poem for a Monday

Small Kindnesses, by Danusha Lameris

I've been thinking about how, when you walk

down a crowded aisle, people pull in their legs  

to let you by. Or how strangers still say "bless you"  

when someone sneezes, a leftover   

from the Bubonic plague. "Don't die" we are saying.   

And sometimes, when you spill lemons   

from your grocery bag, someone will help you   

pick them up. Mostly, we don't want to harm each other.    

We want to be handed our cup of coffee hot,   

and to say thank you to the person handing it. To smile    

at them and for them to smile back. For the waitress   

to call us honey when she sets down a bowl of clam chowder,    

and for the driver in the red pick-up truck to let us pass.   

We have so little of each other, now. So far    

from tribe and fire. Only these brief moments of exchange.   

What if they are the true dwelling of the holy, these    

fleeting temples we make together when we say, "Here,    

have my seat," "Go ahead -- you first," "I like your hat."