I Can See You All

What is it about small dogs and their feeling of superiority?
Here's my 14-year old miniature poodle, Snowball.
He tries to rule my other 2 dogs,
Border Collie and a mixed Pitbull. 
They looked down on him, though, 
after he gets off the couch, like saying, "really?"
They're all really funny to watch.

Birthday on the Cheap

Paul is my boyfriend for almost seven years now. We are both mature and raising teens separately from a previous marriage. We are in no hurry to tie the knots. Some time we will get there before we move to our retirement home :). Anyway, we have grown very relaxed with each other, and we laugh a lot together. It revolves around (mostly) how cheap he is. Of course, I like to exaggerate but that's what jokers do. 


Here's what my cheap boyfriend did this week.

1. My boyfriend is so cheap, he took me out for a birthday lunch in a Japanese restaurant (not cheap, but . .  ). Then, instead, of ordering me dessert there, he took me to an ice cream shop next door.  "it is cheaper there," he says. 
2. Not only that but instead of taking me for a nice walk in the park while licking our ice cream, he asked to walk just outside in the parking lot. He did not want to waste gas on a drive to the park. 
3. We also stirred away from the stores especially the Jewelry store. "They are open," he says. (This reminds me when he offered to walk to the mall with me after 6 pm when the stores were closed. I really liked a pair of boots I could see through the display that I could not buy).
4. "I will take you for a nicer date on Saturday for your birthday week." Something to look forward to, so I thought . . .  He took me to a trade show to look at RVs, not to buy but just to look. He was even complaining about the $10 entrance fee he paid for both of us.
5. Oh, I haven't told you about the big stone he gave me for my birthday. It was this plastic gem on a Hallmark card. Yup, that's my stone pictured above!

Oh, Paul makes me laugh. Please note, I am not putting him down. I really like the guy. He is such an awesome person and he truly takes care of me. He keeps me happy.

Birthday Week

Oh my, I turned 46 this week. There are many things I am thankful for, and here's a few.

1. A birthday week is not complete without a cake, even if I had to buy it for myself, LOL. I received many gifts I did not ask for so I cannot complain. I am thankful for easy ready-made delicious Oreo ice cream cake I bought last night to share with my dear daughter after a busy day from work in the hospital.

Happy Birthday Treats

It's my birthday today. I know, it is not a Wednesday, but I worked yesterday in exchange to today's whole day off. Aside from I-am-still-sick-with-a-cold, and I need a break from wearing a mask, I deserve a day off on my day. That is why I am late posting in ABC Wednesday.

I'd Like To Thank

Well, it's the awards night tonight. So, I'd like to thank a few people and things that supported me through my shopping, eating, and studying habits.

Gizmo and Everything Good

Join us.This week's letter is the letter G.

Monday Pet Day

I have Wally, Paul's Border Collie, 100% for a week as Paul is out-of-state, so I got to take more pictures of him. We have this new water fountain that he would not get near off for the first day I have him. My daughter wanted to get him a separate bowl so he could drink.

"He will die of thirst, mom."

"No, he won't."

Soon enough, I caught him putting his head down, gulp, gulp, gulp he went for a long time. He was thirsty all right.

Enough shots with Wally, so I called brown Velvet for a picture, and girl, she came so closely. LOL.

Happy Monday you all.

Tribute

I just came from a whole day of tribute to a dear friend's husband. 

Green and Red Friday

Can you guess which bunch is given and which flowers are bought?

Fish Fire

I have been checking (and have purchased) planners lately. Most of them I liked but not fully. There was always some parts I do not like that I think is a waste of space. I want to keep my planner small that fits in my everyday bag that is suitable for two small books like A5 size.

I like the idea of bullet journal and Rituals, among a few, so I decided to make my own. Even the pages on Moleskine, I did not like because they are so faint, I have to squint my eyes to see the numbers. Maybe I need glasses too, but that's another story. I dated a hardcover notebook I purchased from Walmart. I also got some stickers, erasable pens, markers, and highlighters. Wallah, I have a planner/journal with the table of contents and pages I will use. I am happy.

I love the looks of fish growing up by the big pond, and I am Pisces, so I attached a fish on the bookmark. The whole thing makes me smile.

What also makes me grin is the city cleaning up the homeless tent in at the back of my house, not too far away. It is owned by the city, and I did not realize till lately, I can just report my concern thru the city app. In the same week, here they are. They are so fast, I did not get a picture of the John Deere thingy, hauling the stuff away. I now have a better view from the dining room where I sit and write.

See, a many years ago, there was a fire there, and the fire department had to be called to kill the fire. It was thought that the camper's fire  got out of control. A distant neighbor reported it as we slept. He lived eight houses away. It was late at night then, and my young family did not have a clue. It gave us a scare we thought we had to evacuate. The area is close to the main road but in a valley form area that is hard to see by others except by my next door neighbor and me.

To make me feel less guilty, the city reported that it appears that the camp had been abandoned. I did not displace anyone. Nobody had been sleeping there lately. Whoever the person was, I hope he or she has found a safer and warmer home this winter.

Well, those are my F's for the week. What's yours?

Join us!

Velvet Upset

I did not walk her first thing in the morning because of early commitment,
so I got home and this is how she looked.
No welcome for me.
(Poor Velvet . . . and giraffe).

Little Miracles

Miracles surround us.

1. Life is a series of thousands of tiny miracles. Notice them.

I was reminded of this quote last night as I watched Netflix series with my daughter, A series of Unfortunate Events, where three children got put in the custody of their undesirable uncle after the death of their wealthy parents in a fire.

"At least we have a home."

But it is one of those scary looking witch-house, dark, messy, and dirty inside. The siblings shared a small bed in the attic, and they have to do a very long list of chores in this house daily.

Well, they have a helpful neighbor that takes them to a store and lets them borrow the home library. (The older siblings love books). Anyway, the show is based on fiction books of the same title. It is unreal, and a lot of times, ridiculous.

It is still synonymous with real life. Sometimes change can be so drastically absurd. But each day we live, tiny miracles are happening. We just have to notice them.

Read, for example, my tiny miracles that follow.

Getting Education Early

I am sitting in the class with my third helping of breakfast and third cup of coffee.

Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today. --Malcolm X 

I had small talks with my son recently who just turned 18. He is on his last year of high school. I was wondering why he has not started looking for colleges yet.



"I want to take a whole year break from school to work and save up for a car."



In a program where he is now, he can possibly get assistance for housing up to a year. I don't know the details of this but I told him that I see this as a waste of his time. He can just stay home rent-free and concentrate on college. Working part-time can just be extra and not required to pay for necessities. I am not trying to make him stay under my wings forever but I do want to help him succeed as early and as least painful it is to him.