chochiyo_sama

I've been either too busy or too tired to write much in my livejournal lately.

Also, I've been feeling a deep sadness brought on by the deaths of my two students and also my dear friend Dave.  I have not sunk in to the morass of depression, but I feel sadness and a deep sense of loss and also I feel like these deaths were such a waste.  Dave had so much talent and wisdom.  Jarah was a peach.  Heidi was a punkin.  They were all snatched from us way too soon.

Sigh.

A week ago, my little son, Stewart, went to the vet for his "surgery."  He is no longer a virile young male.  He is a sterile eunich kitty boy.

It doesn't seem to have altered his personality much.  He's still a lover boy and a wild man.



My darling Stewie.



I just snuggled him as he slept for about six hours the day after I brought him home.  Isn't he the most charming little fellow?

My tomato plants are still alive.  One is thriving nicely and the other is just beginning to look like it is going to make it.



I took this picture about two weeks ago--you can see the little green tomatoes in there if you look carefully.  This is the thriving plant. 



Another view of my developing tomatoes.  You can see that there are quite a few blossoms as well.



Nice shot of the blossoms.



Here you can see how BIG he is getting!

My house is coming along nicely as well and is cause for great rejoicing.  My sister-in-law Kari, my mom, my sister Tammy, and even my brother Jack have been to my house helping me get things in order.  Mom brought her snazzy vacuum cleaner with all sorts of attachments.  Kari hauled stuff around for me.  She is strong. 

She repaired my linen cupboard that has been sitting in the porch for years needing repair.  Then she somehow managed to carry it up the stairs!  That thing is awkward  and large.  Being made of maple, it isn't terribly heavy, but I could not carry it up the stairs even when I was in my prime. 

I went through everything in my porch, including the barbie stuff and the Christmas and other holiday stuff and all the books.  The Ellendale Lions were having a "white elephant" sale during their Ellendale Days, and I donated two pick-up loads and at least 2-3 carloads of stuff to that.  I gave Kari and Jack my antique bed frame for Cora's room, and Kari also took the little coffee table I bought for 50 cents at Hazel Holmes's auction, the small chest of drawers I bought from Pat and Pat Russell's garage sale, and the little book shelf I bought at an auctioin in Geneva for $5.  I gave Jim and DeAnn the old chair (which looks like Mission--but whether it is or not, I do not know).  I loved that old chair.  I got it for $4 at an auction.  I didn't bid on it.  They just pointed at me and hollered, "SOLD."  So, I looked at what I had "bought" and decided to keep it.  The old man whose auction it was told me it was a piece of his "honeymoon furniture" that he and his wife had when they were newlyweds.  He was in his 90s, and that was several years ago, so the piece is OLD. 

One of the things I donated to the Lions were those two antique school desks.  I paid $80 for them a long time ago, when I first bought my house.  They were really cool, but I don't really have much desire for antiquity any more.  I wish I knew if they sold and how much they sold for.  I still loved them too, but I wasn't using them, and probably never would. 

Cora wanted the little wooden sleigh which I purchased many years ago from the Freeborn FFA boys.  It was a fund raiser thing.  I think I paid $25.  Cora is really into sled dogs right now, so it was a great treasure for her.  I have wanted to get rid of it for years.  I like it.  Originally, I had wanted to paint it and set my Cabbage Patch dolls in it at Christmas time.
 
It's better off with Cora and her multitude of stuffed dogs.  LOL.

Grandma Neitzell's old recliner and the arm chair and ottoman that Tammy gave me (she found it for $10 at a garage sale) are now in the porch.  I enjoy sitting out there in the recliner when it isn't too hot.

The cats love that old chair and are often sleeping in it when I come home from one of my many errands.

The porch was wall to wall, floor to ceiling STUFF.  It looks so much better now.

Here is the east side of the porch.  The boxes that are on the right are all of my VCR tapes.  I need to go through them.  I will probably be donating them to the public library if they are still good.  They've been in storage for years, and have sat out in the porch during the freezing winter and broiling summer for at least five years.  If you look on top of that gray plastic storage thing, you will see Peaches.  The next picture is better. 



She looks like a wild creature, doesn't she?  The glowing eyes are kind of freaky. 

I haven't taken a picture of the west side of the porch yet.  Maybe I'll do that tomorrow.

On Friday, I was snuggling wih my kitties and playing the Facebook "Farm" game, which is quite addictive.  I could hear the occasional rumble of thunder, but didn't think much of it.  Pretty soon, my electricity flickered off for a few minutes.  Then there was this pelting noise.  The kitties all leaped up and started staring all around trying to figure out what it was.  I went into the bathroom to see what was going on, and as soon as I was in there, it sounded like a thousand house-elves were on my roof, beating it with hammers.   When I looked out the window, I saw hail pummeling the trees.

I was still in my jammies, so I quickly got dressed and went downstairs.  By the time I was dressed and down there, the hailing had pretty much stopped.  But there was hail everywhere.  By the time I located my camera and went out to take pictures, it had melted down quite a bit, but I still have a couple of good pictures to show.

This is the hail on and near the sidewalk, about ten minutes after it stopped hailing.  Most of the hail was between pea and marble size, but there was some that was a lot bigger.



Here's the hail in the pots of my tomato plants.  The hail stripped the trees of a lot of leaves, but my tomato plants didn't seem to suffer any lasting damage.



Hail in the grass.



Here is one of the larger hailstones.  This picture is a little fuzzy but you can still see how big that little sucker is.



Here's a clearer picture.  The dirt is from the tomato plant's pot.

(Yes, that IS my pudgy little paw.)

That stuff came down HARD and FAST.  It would have hurt like hell to be out there getting pelted with that stuff.

There are some little dents on the hood of my car from that darned hail too.



This is the sky that produced the massive hail storm and the deluge that followed it.   Pretty scary sky!



This is also an unfortunately fuzzy picture, but you can see how big my little tomatoes are  getting!  Every time I look at them, I think how good they are going to taste sliced thick on a piece of lightly buttered toast.  YUM.



Here are my three youngsters waiting for me to give them their morning treats.  They are obsessive about their treats!

Stewie is on the left, Tyger Lilly in the middle, and Peaches is in the rear to the right.

They are getting so big!  Not little babies any more.



I was trying to get a nice face shot of all three, but Peaches is sort of shy and retiring.  She will approach her mommy (me) mewing and head butting now, however, when she feels the need for some love and affection.



Here's my Stewart, looking so grown up.  He is such a long and lanky cat.  When he fills out he is going to be HUGE.  His tail is nearly 18 inches long!

He's a big, loveable lug.



This is how he lies next to me every chance he gets, head on the pillow, smiling and purring, and his paw resting on my neck or my boob.  (little perve.)



Another shot of lover boy.



Mama's sweet little Peach Blossom.  (and mom's feet as well).  Peaches especially enjoys hiding behind the bed skirt then leaping out to attack my feet as I try to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. 



It's hard to get a good picture of Tyggy because she has to investigate the camera.  She has such pretty eyes and such cute coloring patterns.



Stewie Monster gobbling up his treats.



I took this one just a few minutes ago--he was snuggled up so tight to me. 

And here is one of his favorite napping positions.  He often lies in my arms like this for hours.  He is definitely a cuddle slut.



Another failed attempted to get a nice face shot of Tyggy.



This one isn't too bad.  LOL.  My little punkin girl.  I love her orange nose and her white muzzle.  Note her whiskers--they are black next to her muzzle, but white after about an inch.  I've never seen whiskers like that before.