01-02-09

  Worked like a beaver on knitting right up until 3 days before Christmas. The week of Christmas found me in a new caregiver role. My neighbor across the street has a pet bunny and lots of freshwater fish and tropical fish tanks in their home and a koi pond outside that needed constant care. They had not had a long vacation together so I took on the household chores for them so they could enjoy a complete week of fun and fishing on the ocean up north of here in a rental/boat. That bunny was something else. Soooooo cute and had the run of the house. He was a lot like a kitty cat with his own litter box and the toys but not a verbal nuisance as my Alabama is to Bill.

  Speaking of which, he was in a bah-humbug mood that whole day. I spent most of Christmas on the phone with my kids which was a great gift for me.

  While taking care of bunny and the fish I made up my mind that the gift I was going to get myself was a lily pond for my back yard. I already have a small solar fountain which has been gathering dust since raccoon tipped it over one night on my porch breaking the ceramic upper tier pot so all I needed was a liner, a hole and some water. I have a pink water lily that grows in the rain collection barrel at the corner of the porch eave. I know I won't be able to have fish for being neglected all summer just wouldn't work but the lily won't mind. 

I have been slowly, as these old bones can stand each day, digging out the hole for the pond. It is going to be 3 by 5 and 3 feet deep, that way will stay cooler in the summer for the plants. I am sure it will attract some little frogs for every once in a while I see some hanging around in my garden. I love their little songs. Got the liner just the other day from home depot online. They, to my surprise, gave me free shipping. Can't beat that. Sure saved trudging around in a huge store and the complaints I would have gotten for the trip it would have taken to just get to the store.

  Every year I make it a goal to learn something new and to do it. 

2008 was almost history without my finally getting that goal fulfilled. Well studying and building a lily pond filled that goal even though I am dragging a bit of it into 2009 for completion...

  One day around here blurs into another. My haven of keeping my sanity rests on enjoying the outside gardens and my cat Alabama, my phone calls and emails and pogo chat with my kids, my knitting with the wonderful contacts with my customers, internet friends like you, and kind and loving neighbors.... That is my world. Bill is a pain to even try to go out to eat with. The only conversation I can have is with my fingers typing on my keyboard and the phone calls that I must rush out to another room to take. If in the same room where Bill is he turns the volume up high on his TV making a phone call conversation impossible to enjoy.

  Hope to be heading back to Michigan in the end of April. Thank goodness I am avoiding all the winter weather... Was 82 and very sunny here Christmas day.