Birthday fun on April twenty-one.

April 21st is a special day in our family.  My eldest daughter whose birthday is that day gave birth to her son some 27 years later on the same day.  Double the reasons for a family party and this year was no exception.  We started with “Ronnie’s Chocolate Sheet Cake” which is our family’s favorite special occasion cake.  (One day I’ll tell you about Ronnie.)

As the younger generation grows up  these parties start to have more significance than ever before.  Two of our family had to drive some distance to be here for the festivities.  We very much appreciate their effort.

It’s fun to watch the gift-opening and to read the funny cards.  Often in our family we say “I love you” by finding the funniest card in the store and trying to make the celebrant laugh.  Does your family do that?

My birthday grandson gave these lovely cut flowers to his birthday mom because he knew they would make her smile.  They fit right in with the quirky colors on the cake and we didn’t even compare notes.  ( You probably noticed in the top photo that I’m not a decorator of cakes, just a baker.  To make it look festive I find candles and ribbons to fake it for me.)

Here you see the honored birthday folk with smiles on their faces right after blowing out the candles.  (They are deliberately in shadow because I failed to get permission to publish them.)  May all their wishes come true.

Meanwhile I’ll pack up the 9 x 13 cake pan and look forward to June when we will have another cake that will look eerily similar to the one pictured here.  But more important than the sameness of the cake will be the sameness of the faces and the laughter and the silliness and the dogs and the children–our family!  How lucky we are.

Dogsitting.

The average dog is a nicer person than the average person.                   ~ Andrew A. Rooney

This slightly fuzzy photo is Gus.  He didn’t really want to pose for me and that’s my excuse for the less-than-focused image.  I had the privilege of caring for Gus over the weekend.  He’s my neighbor’s dog and his usual “sitter” wasn’t available.

I could tell that K was a little hesitant to ask me to keep him, but I’m betting my enthusiastic response quelled any concerns she may have had.  “Of course, I would love to have Gus for the weekend!”  Here’s the deal–I’ve thought about having a pet again because I sometimes get lonely.  This was just the opportunity I needed to make up my mind.  Do I want a dog?  Or not?

For two nights Gus slept on the floor beside my bed.  He was a very good boy.  No noises during the night.  He doesn’t need to go out during the night.  He gets two meals a day, morning and night.  He will play fetch as long as his human will, but when the human gets tired and says, “OK, Gus, sit.”  Gus sits.  And grins.  And drools a little.  Of course he doesn’t sit for long because he wants to get as close to his human as possible.  He even tried to get in my lap once or twice.  Not a good fit, though.  Still, the effort on his part is endearing.

You’re probably thinking by now that I’m getting a dog.  I’m not.  Having him next door is just enough of a doggie fix for me.  He helped me to realize that I truly don’t want the responsibility and the inconvenience.  I can visit Gus when I want.  I can visit my granddogs Wilson and Charley.  And I can get up and go whenever I choose and don’t have to worry about vets and kennels, etc.  I can also change my mind at a later date.  For now, I choose to remain pet-less.

My friend Ozzy.

White-bellied caique.

“I can look reality right in the eye and ignore it. –Garrison Keillor

The white-bellied caique is a type of Amazon parrot.  Ozzy is a re-homed bird who lives now with my friends DR and L.  I called him my friend in the title of this piece but the truth is:  He hasn’t chosen me to be his friend.  Parrots choose whom they will like.  Dogs will love whoever feeds and cares for them and will quickly become that person’s best friend and companion.  Not so with birds.  Ozzy, as I said, lives with DR and L.  He chooses DR and tolerates L even though L is a primary care-giver.  And he tolerates me.  One night when I whistled as I worked, he looked up at me and whistled back.  Will he choose me one day?  Probably not.  But it’s okay.  I still like to look at him.  He’s beautiful.  And if he ever does choose me, I bet he will be forever faithful.

I thought that was the case with D.  I thought he would be my lifelong companion and best friend.  The frustration, confusion and pain I felt when he walked out on our marriage and relationship of 30+ years is still incomprehensible and painful today.  Why was I chosen one day and not the next?  And why on earth have I looked this reality in the eye for four years and so often ignored it?  I find it amazingly stupid of me to still have days, like today, when I would like to ignore it.  I think it’s called loneliness.  Fortunately, it doesn’t get to me very often anymore.  More often than not, I accept my reality and even like it.  In my weaker moments I still miss him.