Oh? Oh...

While hiking with the Rhodesian buddies yesterday, their mom told me that Mabel has taught Sue how much fun it is to sneak under the fence and into the kitty's yard - the one I wrote about here.

She went on to tell me that whenever she encounters a stranger at the creek and the Rhodies go running toward them, instead of her usual mantra - "They're just friendly, large puppies!!" - She now says, "We're friends of Mabel's!"

To which said stranger typically replies with two words. The same words with much different meanings. The first is high pitched on the end, a question. The second is much deeper implying recognition. They are, "Oh??? Oh..."

Now just what does that say about my dog??


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What a Girl Wants

I was snoozing away at 7:15 this morning when I felt Mabel jump off the bed. A few seconds later, she was playing with my hand hanging off the edge of my bed. Strange... she had gone out to potty at 3:30. As I got up to let her out, I realized I needed to take care of my own business first.

I rolled across the bed to get out on the bathroom side - I guess I should tell you just how tiny my bathroom is. While every home I've had in California has had tiny bathrooms, the master bath in this house is exceptionally small. I've been on boats with bigger bathrooms!

Still, the tiny bathroom has had its advantages, like when I had surgery and was in a wheelchair. I simply rolled across the bed with some force, tucking my left knee in so I could land on my right foot and grab onto the doorway. Hop, grab the sink. Twist my right foot inward toward my left, pivot and sit down. Roll, hop, twist, pivot and I'm on the throne.

Thanks to the mirrors on my closets and the decorative mirrors on the opposite wall, I can see every square inch of my bedroom from the john.

As I sat down there this morning, Mabel's made her true intentions known. No, she did not want to go outside to potty. There was something else she desired.

It was a warm spot in the bed on a chilly morning with 600 thread count sheets next to her furry little bod she craved! She woke me up to have my spot in the bed!

After I opened the back door for her, did she budge??? Nooooo! I checked email - a sure fire way to get her attention. Mommy is not allowed on the computer before the princess eats! Did that rouse her??? Noooo! Only the sound of her morning kibble hitting her bowl got her out of bed.

Hey, what can I say. It's her house. I just pay the mortgage.

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Light Envy

I haven't been in the South for the fall time change in well over 20 years. Last Sunday afternoon, I was desperate to get my mother and sister away from the sale rack at Dillard's so that I could get home and take my laundry in. I had to pack and I didn't want damp clothes.

My mother and sister casually strolled out of the store, not understanding what had me so upset. As I walked outside well past 6 p.m. and saw daylight, they laughed at my amazement. I started to think I was a little nuts because I expected it to be dark so early.

It wasn't until I returned to L.A. and realized that here, it does get dark way too early after the time change. By 5:15, it's very dark.

No wonder I have such issues fighting my dark mood this time of year. It gets dark more than a hour earlier here!


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Shake Shake Shake

I've received several emails and one comment about my breakfast shake from this post, so I thought I would write about it.

The Recipe

1 Scoop MRM's Whey Pumped Protein Powder
About 1 tsp. Cinnamon 1
1 tsp. Vanilla 2
1 cup skim milk 3
Handful of fruit 4

Add milk and protein powder to blender and mix for a few seconds. Add other ingredients and blend well. Enjoy!

Why It Works for Me...

A few months ago, I started feeling dizzy after eating. As diabetes runs rampant in both sides of my family and I'm overweight thanks to my foot issues, I was worried. I got a blood test... I'm fine. But why the dizziness?

I called my good friend Libi who works at a wellness center in Reno. Libi is one of the most knowledgeable people on health I've ever met. She told me that women have issues processing carbs as we age and that I needed to get some protein with every meal. It is crucial to to set your sugar point at breakfast. And most of us eat something way too sweet first thing in the morning. This shake is a good way to get in some protein and fill up in a healthy way and it tastes good too.

A few weeks after this, I saw a female doctor on Oprah... she said the identical things about carbs and not eating sweets in the morning. Here's a link to that part of the show.

Libi also emailed a diet. Surprisingly, it was easy to follow. The shake helped cut all my sugar cravings. I found I didn't think about sweets. I lost 11 lbs. in one week BUT... it took three more weeks for me to lose another pound. In all, I'm down 15 lbs... would be more but my trip to Louisiana got me out of my lunch and dinner routine.

The Commercial

More info on the product.

What Libi has to say: It has a full amino acid profile meaning that after workouts, there is full muscle recovery.

Non-GMO and SUPER LOW CARBS! LACTOSE AND CASEIN FREE!!!! (Which means people who are normally lactose intolerant or have a problem digesting milk proteins can use the product [when mixed with water instead of milk!])

Libi and Dr. John Burton are offering my readers 15% off the product which makes it $26.00 if they get it through Burtons!! It is not on their website; you have to call them. For those of you who don't mail order, it should be available in better health food stores.

Libi also has chocolate flavor.

The Footnotes...

1. Cinnamon is believed to help control blood sugar.
2. I use vanilla bean paste when I travel...more expensive; less messy. Makes the shake sweeter without adding carbs.
3. I find the milk fills me up longer. If you are lactose intolerant, use water...the shake tastes fine that way.
4. I love using frozen fruit in summer to make it thick and icy; extra ice too. But apples are great too and lots of fiber. Avoid pineapple & mango...too much sugar. Different fruit changes the flavor and keeps it interesting. Buy fruit frozen without sugar.

I really feel like a new person since starting this and at least I know I've done one good thing for myself every day.
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Ain’t It Good To Be Back Home Again?

I got up and torched today – before unpacking. I was afraid I had forgotten everything! Then, I took Mabel on the longest hike. The creek is flowing and so full. Even the upper creek has water.

Mabel was just stir crazy from only having left the house once for a play date while I was away. We followed the creek upstream and then down, taking the rocky path beside the water instead of the steady inland path.

We went to the waterfall where Mabel ran down some great smell and I sat a spell on one of my favorite boulders and just listened to the water. Since many tiny streams converge at this point, I love to sit and stare at one and try to isolate its sound based on the rhythm of the water falling. It’s a mesmerizing game. And peaceful…

I lingered, pondering how long it had been since I spent any restful, quiet time with my dog. With God. With me.


The Trip

The trip home was fairly nice. There were the usual family squabbles… We all sure know how to push one another’s buttons. It’s really sad that people who love each other can’t really get along for any length of time.

So, while I was overwhelmed with Mama drama, Mabel decided to be a brat. The coons were coming in my yard at night and apparently, Miss Piss barked all night long for two nights before the neighbors weigh-laid the babysitters and gave them an earful.

We ended up locking her in the house at night. The Rhodesian’s mom gets off late and would bring the pups over for a midnight romp and then lock Mabel in my room. The morning crew would let her out around 7:30. That seemed to be working but when I arrived home, I found she had been peeing on my carpets in there.

I tried to show no negativity as I cleaned up the mess but Mabel would not stay in the room with me as I cleaned!

But back to my visit home…. There was something fun to do every day. A craft fair at Oak Alley Plantation (with more good food than my brain could process!) and another at the casino. I got to visit with one of my favorite cousins and her three-year-old twins.
My sister turned 65 while I was there and she and I had a great dinner, just the two of us (Mom got side-tracked at the casino.) and then I spent the night with her.

I also got to meet my personal blogger hero, Velvet. I know I quote her here often but she is such an inspirational person to me. I wish I could write like that! And she’s just as wonderful and eloquent in person.

Boo

Trick-or-Treating with my cousins in Watson was a highlight. I’ve never seen anything like it. People would pull a hay trailer with a four wheeler. The trailers were all decorated with lights and pumpkins and hay. They would pile on the kids and dogs and make the rounds… and this is not a rural neighborhood!

The streets were packed with people. And everyone giving away candy was usually sitting at a decorated table in their front yard. Trick or Treat is only two hours long there but people were telling us they had bought $350 worth of candy and were running out!

I got to spend several blocks of time with my cousin and his kids. One of the best was the night before Halloween. There is an all you can eat pizza buffet in Denham Springs we all love. The food is wonderful and a steal at those prices but… There is one of those game rooms for kids attached. My sister had handed me a $10 for the kids to go play and I thought it would be strange to hand two kids one ten. So I pulled out another $10. That has to be the best ten bucks I spent all week! My little cousin just adores the Sponge Bob game there. He’s quite good at stopping the wheel on 125 points… the max.

He recruited me to be his assistant. “When I hold my hand out, you put another token in it, Aunt Holly, OK?”

Every time he hit 125, he would throw his hands in the air and scream “JACKPOT!!!!” Which I had to do as well…

And when he didn’t hit a high score, we would swing our arms and scream, “DOH.” Everyone was staring! We didn’t care!

The Bad News…

I did return home to some bad news. My friend Kat’s son was in a horrible brawl at USC’s homecoming Saturday. He never saw the attack coming. They just jumped him, took him to the ground and stomped and kicked the crap out of the boy.

This boy – (it’s so funny, but he was on my mind all day Sunday. I kept thinking of the day he was born and getting to hold him – something his mom allowed very few to do.) – is one of the most peace-loving people I know. He is kind and gentle despite being 6’6”. And while he does have a black belt in judo… he was never one of those boys that loved to fight. He deplores it.

His mom had spent the day at the huge apartment he rents (7 roommates) near USC and had a wonderful day. The boys got ready to go to the game and she drove the 20 minutes home. The phone was ringing when she arrived. Her boy was in the hospital.

He apparently fought the firemen, nurses and doctors helping him… thinking he was still being attacked. And while unconscious, he kept screaming, “Get off me!” and “HELP! Somebody, help me!”

But there is good news. This boy who started accumulating concussions before the age of two managed to get through this beating without one! Lots of bruises to his rib cage and chest and his face is a mess but no concussion. He does have severe damage to his eye and we are waiting to hear what’s next… He needs surgery; it’s just a question of when.

And while his parents had the most acrimonious, drawn-out, nasty divorces I’ve ever been a witness to, Kat, her ex and his girlfriend have been an amazing team. The girlfriend is a nurse at Cedars and has put some of the best eye doctors on the case. Kat stays with her boy dealing with day to day medical and keeping ice on him to help with the swelling. The ex is all over the legal end. No two ways about it – we all want somebody to pay for this!

I’m just so sad that this could happen to such a gentle 19-year-old. I hate to see someone so young become afraid of the world.

Wrapping it up…

So I have a lot of blogs to catch up on and a ton of stuff in the shop to get done. Not to mention, I sold a bunch beads from wearing my own stuff around Baton Rouge and got home to orders for those. My best friend’s mom is in from Hungary and I know I’ll need to spend some time with Kat and her boy but hopefully, I’ll get back into t he swing of things soon.

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