Debster822's Blog

Chris was up at O-dark-thirty because he had a plane to catch. He wrangled the dogs, made the usual morning coffee (see previous post), wrapped my insulated mug in a tea towel to keep it warm, kissed me goodbye; I woke up enough to hug him and thank him for my daily spoiling, and went back to sleep. Woke in plenty of time for breakfast, still-warm coffee, and the weekly trashcan roll to the curb.

My business partner  no longer drives, so I drove halfway across town (there is no direct route) early to fetch her and drive to Winters for our weekly marketing meeting. Great meeting; packed house, all kinds of energy happening in Winters. In the next 5 years the population might double, maybe even more. Yikes.

A colleague who mentored me during my leadership years is a casual cyclist; her boyfriend is much more avid. She asked the obvious questions regarding Winters’ remaining bike-friendly. The mayor answered in the affirmative. I sincerely hop she’s right & committed to that — we bike to Winters for food, coffee, fun, and we invite many out-of-area friends to join us in enjoying Winters. I wouldn’t be happy to see Winters lose its wonderful bike-friendly culture.

The latest offer was accepted, yay! And now my sweet & naïve seller, so high maintenance, is excited and nervous and requires me to repeatedly bring him into focus. It should be okay in the long run, and as much as I’m used to the hustle and the continual need to be on my toes, I admit that it’s mentally and emotionally taxing. Usually I ride my bike to work that out; tonight, however, I’m enjoying a craft beer (locally made, no less) and a Romeo Añejo cigar on the patio, listening to the wind blowing through new leaves, and relaxing. Breathe in, breathe out, let the tension go. This is just what I needed.

Woke up with a headache and couldn’t determine why. Chris delivered the usual (double espresso, steamed milk, and coffee to fill a tall insulated mug) and I still couldn’t roust myself for my nest: flannel sheets and a dog on either side. So comfy.\

Yet I rolled out as Chris left about 6:45 and got right down to business: Letting my neighbor’s cat out, brushing her first (because she wouldn’t be bribed with food along), spraying orchids, soaking the Tillandsia, and dealing with otherwise pedestrian chores.

Rolled into the office knowing I’d receive an offer on my newest listing, and BOOM! There it was. Reviewed it, discussed it with my broker, had my buyer come sign & counter. Called the agent at 4:30-ish and no response. Hmmm. Emailed the counter to him and at 12:15 no response. Hmmmm.

Chris didn’t feel like cooking so we called friends to invite them to dinner at Preserve, in Winters. They were up to it: She has an injured horse and fielded calls from the vet ,etc. He lost a son today and was prepared for it and didn’t want to be home, so the evening with excellent food and people was what we all needed. We left so filled, and fulfilled. Love spending time with friends.

Tomorrow is a new day and we’ll see how this plays out. I missed riding my bike, yet appreciated the day off — and cannot wait to get back on the rode tomorrow.

So Monday wasn’t the Moanday that many expect…maybe it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. This was a terrific day.

A colleague in the lending industry whom I’ve known for a decade lost his mother this week. She lived a long and, according to her obit, happy life. I’m sorry for my colleague’s loss. It’s hard to lose your mom.

I had a productive Thursday; I skipped my morning ride so I could get my business tax info compiled and completed. Mission: Accomplished. So we went for a quick ride to celebrate.

Friday morning I was up early, prepared the house for my excellent house cleaner, bike-commuted to a meeting, set up 5 showings of my latest listing for Saturday, rode home, cleaned up, texted and talked on the phone with my seller & interested parties. My phone really got a work out yesterday.

Last night our friends from Seattle/Sacramento came over for Chris’s famous fish tacos. Ah, sooo  goooooood! And really good company. Our local cycling/wine/horse friend brought Fenton’s take on salted caramel ice cream; P & T brought some Ginger Elizabeth dark chocolate nut bark, and we drank a lovely moscato with dessert. Great evening, great fun.

Today Chris finished & filed the taxes. We’re due modest refunds, which we’ll put towards our front yard project. Then we rode to Steady Eddy’s for a late lunch, and finished with a reverse Winters Loop, adding Vine St. climbing for a hilly end.

While Chris was working on the taxes I consulted with our friends & neighbors who have 2 houses to sell. I’ll list at least one of them later, probably in the summer.

Now I’m blogging, enjoying a Shiner Prickly Pear adult recovery beverage, a La Flor Dominicana cigar, and a beautiful spring evening  on the patio. The orange tree is beginning to flower, and the scent is heavenly. What a blessed, balanced week I’ve had. Color me grateful.

http://cuteoverload.com

I cannot be happier. We’ve dodged an expensive and intrusive bullet. And our stress level is low; yes!

Yesterday morning we brought him home with his cone and bulky blue bandage on his left hock. He was happy to see us; Oliver was happy to see him, and Beau whined all the way home.

He whined all day, except for a short walk we took, and Chris stepped up and petted/held/restrained/whatever it took to keep the confused dog comfortable.

We put his Thundershirt on (he loves that thing; it puts him in his Zen place every time) and he was a different dog. We removed the cone (a more complicated version than you can buy OTC) and he was so chill…whew. Whining done.

I went for a bike ride yesterday afternoon while Chris wrangled Beau; today I sent him off on the Shop Ride (he’ll be away for 4 days with no bike) and I caught up with some gardening and replanting projects that I’ve procrastinated. Beau wore his Thundershirt and was very calm. Oliver followed his lead, and there was no drama in my work or the dogs’ morning/afternoon.

Beau slept a lot, and that’s a good thing. Oliver was also subdued although he started a fence war with the new dogs. I broke that up; will not tolerate that.

Later in the afternoon Chris & I picked most of the oranges left on the tree — we filled 2-5 gallon buckets, and rendered one of them as juice — that was 5+ qts. We’re freezing most of them in our 3 silicone trays that are 6×1/2 cup; I’ll empty them into a Ziplok baggie tomorrow and freeze another 18 cubes. We also processed and juiced 2 pineapples. So pineapple/orange/banana/strawberry smoothies will happen this week.

Let’s see what Monday delivers. I’m prepared for it — are you?

I’m not laughting. Nor should you. This isn’t sarcasm; it’s about #homicide. http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1224923

And it’s so wrong.

CuteOverload has brought me much enjoyment over the years, and I’m grateful for Brinke for posting my note & one of our favorite pictures of one of my favorite dogs. Thanks, CO!

Cancer Sucks and I Hate It.