virtual sand art

i've had the joyous pleasure of falling in love (and living with) three lhasa's

--or as i began referring to them during my last one's time with me: apsos!

none of them ever cared about fireworks or thunderstorms (unlike my corgi/border collie mix who shook tremendously in her panic state during the seasons of 4th of july and new year's eve, and used to hide in the bathtub when she heard loud booms and bangs)

peanut butter on the other hand--well, to be honest i don't remember how the first two liked it but the last apso baby i had loved to eat everything. peanut butter was definitely on her list of "if it's food or kleenex, paper towels, or weird tree stuff on the sidewalk, or a blanket, or even my sweater/coat, i'll eat it!"

my birthday cake

recently someone here posted a link to cake wrecks dot com & i thought a lot of the pictures were really funny. i told my daughter about them. so here is the cake my funny, sweet girl gave me. i absolutely loved it!

i think if the ziplock bag had air holes that might be a good thing. if not.... n/t

interesting story from a non-believer

how do you blend the belief with the incident?

do you think it was possible you were dreaming or still half asleep?

i know i was a staunch believer in the "when you're dead, you're dead" line of thought for a good part of my teens, twenties, & thirties. yet i had a similar type of run in with a family member when i was a kid--but it was in the daytime when i was playing. it scared the crap out of me! she looked as real as anyone and she spoke to me.

the "when you're dead you're dead" belief lead me to finally wonder how i could explain or justify what happened to me when i was a kid if, in fact, when you're dead you're dead is true. and i couldn't.

i tend to be a rather cynical "i'll believe it when i see it" type of person and eventually came to the realization that i did see it with my own eyes and had to admit that even though "when you're dead, you're dead" is so easy to be dismissive with, (such an easy go-to response)--it just isn't accurate.

so i'm just curious. you're reply of "I do not believe in ghosts. That being said, I've seen two of them" sounds like something i've probably said at one time. and i smiled when i read it.

to my mom on this five year anniversary

of which she physically departed this world.

the past couple of days have been so hard--today was a terribly hard day too. i haven't had days like these for awhile.

it is amazing to think that i have been without her in this world for five years. i wonder how i have even managed.

there is a gazebo with a winding stone path leading to it

it is decorated with "fairy lights" (small, multi-colored xmas lite strands)

there is a quiet sound of crickets. the moon is a crescent.

sitting in the gazebo is my mom. she has a glass of iced tea she is drinking. there is a glass waiting for me. she smiles as i approach and says my name. i am overjoyed to be with her again.

it is a perfect summer evening.

i sit down beside her and wrap my arms around her. she hugs me back.

today is the fifth anniversary of her passing.

that's what i thought when i read this. he saw her--she was there, and he was overcome

with emotion as he sobbed her name

heartfelt sympathy. parting with those we love is heartbreaking.

but i suspect it makes our eventual reunion with them all the more joyous.

...until you meet again....

beautiful pictures

the paragraph says they can be "devastating pests" and, at first, i thought it said "devastating pets."

my daughter had a total of seven pet mice (2 and 2 and 3--there were four living together at one period) -- they were all adorable, all with cute, individual personalities, and we were absolutely devastated when each one of them died. mice don't live long--and each one of these ranged from 9 months to a little over two years. each one was individually cremated in a private cremation and their ashes are in little urns. each one was loved so much.

thank you for these darling pictures.