August Theme: Animals and Other Things

It's been over a month since I last posted, and I'm not sure where the time has gone. We're now in the final quarter of the year, and with holidays, time goes faster than usual! While I'm not looking forward to the holidays, I am anticipating more pleasant weather. Our mornings are already a bit cooler and less humid, but I'm eager for the whole day to become more tolerable. These months are often our best and I'm hoping that's the case this year.

One thing that has taken much of my time is getting estimates for the replacement of my bedroom carpet. I can stand it no longer (stains that can't be removed, etc.). The estimates range from $1700 to $2800 to carpet a 22 x 14 foot room!! I knew it would likely be more than I expected, but I certainly didn't expect that! And I'm not looking for anything exotic, basically a replacement of what is already there. Boy has this been an eye-opener!

August began with a nice surprise. I received a text from a friend, Deborah B, inviting me to join her for dinner. We belonged to a monthly group that disbanded during Covid and I hadn't seen her in a while, but she was going to be out this way and made contact, which I really appreciated. We had a nice dinner at Truffles and caught up. I really enjoyed seeing her again. The month progressed with lunches with Tippy, Chris, Lynn and Tom, Indian food with Maria and Mark, and an outing with a new neighbor, Jeanne. And I wonder why I can't lose weight!

The most excitement for the month revolved around the little critter to the left! Meet Gigi! Gigi belongs to a neighbor who had a trip planned to Vermont when her dogsitter fell through at the last minute. So, I was asked if I would keep her. How could I refuse? Well, Rosie was NOT a good hostess! She was so jealous! I pretty much focused on keeping them apart. Gigi is a bundle of energy, smart, funny, with a big personality, and she loves to snuggle. That did not go over well with Rosie! I kept her from Friday to Monday, and things went pretty well until someone came to my door on Sunday morning and both rushed to the door, where there was a major skirmish. The remainder of the time was pretty much like that with Rosie snarling whenever Gigi came too close to me or her. Needless to say, I was relieved when it was over. Gigi's mom was very generous, bringing me some Vermont maple syrup and a gift certificate to a local restaurant. I was glad to help, as I hope others would be willing to help me, but it isn't something I would volunteer to do again!

Well, I have officially surrendered the bird feeder to the squirrels, for Rosie's pleasure! The video shows what happens when they show up - they bring new life to Rosie! For a while, after our morning walk, she would get back in my bed and sleep all morning. I was a little concerned though there were no other signs of anything being wrong. Once the squirrels showed up, she came alive! I realized that she was probably bored. She now naps in the sunroom so as not to miss anything.

Since Rosie has been spending more time in the sunroom, Mother Nature has rewarded her with a parade of wildlife. We've both enjoyed seeing them pass through. I was probably most surprised by the turtle. I noticed Rosie looking down and reacting differently than with the squirrels, and lo and behold, there was a huge turtle. I kept track of him all afternoon, and suddenly he was gone! I went outside and checked the yard, around the corner, etc. No turtle! I didn't think they could move fast enough to just disappear. Anyway, sometime later, I saw him walking across my neighbor's yard heading across the fairway and to the marsh. He amused us for most of the afternoon.

 

 Somewhere in the midst of all this, Idalia came and went. There was the usual suspense of waiting to see what would happen (like being stalked by a turtle!), but I'm happy to say we were bypassed. A lot of small debris was blown around on roads and yards, but nothing to complain about, thank goodness.

Since it seems that most of today's post involves animals, I'll share a story Sandi S. sent about her neighbor's Great Pyrenees Casper, who at great expense to his own wellbeing, saved his flock from a pack of coyotes, killing 8 in the process!. I remembered Sandi telling us that she had used her neighbor's sheep to clear her property, so I can imagine how much this story touched her. You can see the story HERE. Rhonda T sent a lovely story of Southwest Airlines Animal Rescue Flight saving and transporting animals from the disastrous fire in Lahaina, Hawaii. You can see it HERE. Thank you both for sharing these heartwarming stories.