I’m writing this post earlier than usual because guess who has been up since 4:30 am??? Not one, but both of us! I have absolutely no idea why we both woke up so early. We just did. But it’s too early and my brain feels foggy and my eyes feel stingy.
Some nap time this afternoon, please.
It’s raining quite heavily and will be raining all day long. We’re having brunch with Rick and Doug later this morning. We want to see them before they leave for Europe and I have to get my instructions for taking care of their plants while they’re gone. No sooner will Rick get back than we’ll be taking off on our trip. So we won’t see each other very much for the next 6 weeks.
A little rose blooming yesterday.
Morning glories from my early bloom plant. The Heavenly Blues have yet to sport a single bud and I’m getting very impatient.
I’ve never had so many zinnias! Ever. More and more blooms every day. I don’t know why this year is different. But I’m very grateful!
I forgot to mention something yesterday. The 1-2 punch involves two separate incidents, which is why I used that term. In one of the incidents, I contacted someone and received a phone call right away and that person apologized profusely and sincerely. I have no doubt about the sincerity. It doesn’t change what happened or how it left me feeling, but I do want to make sure I make that known.
Two incidents. Two jobs. Quite a bit of expected income lost.
Moving on.
Don has downloaded the Babbel app and is learning some basic French words and phrases. He’s so darned cute. I can hear him listening and repeating words as I write this. I took four years of French eons ago and a lot of it is coming back to me, but I think I could use some Babbel myself.
Okay. More coffee needed.
Happy Monday.
That rose is beautiful! I have always had a soft spot for roses. My grandpa had them everywhere! It was a huge feat, as we lived in the desert! Every Christmas morning, he and my grandma would arrive and he always brought the very last roses from his bushes. Can you imagine still having roses at Christmas?
I have always loved the French language. It is so beautiful! You can insult someone and it sounds lovely! Example: I looked up ‘You are a heartless toad’ and it sounds so nice!
Have a lovely brunch!
It is a really beautiful language, Debbie!
Claudia, you might be surprised with a little prompting how much will come back to you.
I think early language training becomes somewhat indelible…how when we’re young, and our brain isn’t too full yet, we soak this stuff up like a sponge. (I was a tried & true ‘secretary’ before I was even out of my teens, and this was the day of the manual typewriter… and the use of Gregg shorthand to ‘take a letter’/’take this down’. Shorthand is its own written language [I’m still fascinated by it] and I make notes to myself in shorthand to this day yet it’s been fifty years that I was in a shorthand class [I took lessons for two semesters]. And I learned how to type with no letters or numbers on the keys, so I could probably type in my sleep. I was typing voluminous sermons for a minister when I was 15 years old; the pay certainly supplemented my babysitting money of fifty cents an hour and it beat picking lemons or bagging groceries or having a newspaper route or washing dishes in a restaurant, which a lot of my friends were doing, although it’s all noble work for a teen [gosh, one of my classmates was even a grave digger…but, you know, guys needed to gas up the car for dates and we were all saving for things like a class ring, yearbook, clothes; college.)
I bought one of those ‘phrase-a-day’ calendars last year and felt a little puffed up about what I could still read and say in French. I do LOVE to say the words because the language is indeed lovely. I could never write it easily, though. I’ll also practice with packaging I get when something’s printed in a few languages; it’s fun, and the dog looks at me quizzically. (It’s like singing out loud when you know nobody’s around who’ll hear you!) After six years of French study from age 12 to 18 (not immersion, but still valuable), I found that much of the language hadn’t left me when I was lucky enough to go to France as a young woman but, true, at that time, I was only a few years out of the classroom. Still, anything you’ve got helps; you can pick up a lot of the conversational French you’ll hear over there but they do speak, of course, rapidly and naturally to where sometimes you want to be the director who says “cut” or wish for slow-mo!
I learned typing the same way.
I’m pretty good with the sound and rhythm of French, most likely due to years of dialect coaching. Don always stops me and says “You sound so good!” But I want to tackle it a bit more before I go over there. It’s fun to get to use it again.
Oh, sure, I’m totally forgetting that through your work, you’d of course be adept at language!
Claudia, I still have my mom’s manual typewriter from the 1940s (it’s not a portable; she worked for a school district and she bought it brand new when they’d had a surplus of typewriters for the classroom; she was in the order department at that time so had access/awareness of the shipment) and it’s that very typewriter I practiced on at home (and typed all those sermons on!). I’m rather partial to typewriters in general and find them still quite helpful when having to type a quick envelope or fill out a paper form. (Yep, I’m a dinosaur!)
Don has a manual typewriter that I gave him for Christmas several years ago. If I had the space, I’d love an IBM Selectric, which I typed on when I had an office job – well, I had a lot of office jobs! Love the sound of that typewriter!
Your zinnas are so pretty. I just love the bright colors. I love living in Florida, but really miss my annuals and perennials which I could fill vases with all summer. Thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome!
I love Zinnias and yours are wonderful this year. I hope you get that nap later! I’m taking Annie in to get her nails trimmed. She will stay with my Mom while I’m in Cali and so I must make sure her nails are trimmed. Mom takes blood thinners and so scratches are something we try to avoid. Today would be Charlie’s 20th birthday. I miss that old boy so much but I know he is lazing around in kitty heaven. I’m having a little trouble with my A/C unit but the maintenance man is here and fixing it. One of the perks of living in a good rental is quick repairs. So much to do before leaving Wed! Hugs!!
I took French in high school and college but never was fluent in it. When I was in Paris surrounded by the language it amazed me how much of it came back to me.
Oh good. Much of it is coming back to me, as well.
Happy Birthday to dear Charlie. Always his birthday!
I first took after-school French lessons at age 10. Our teacher was a local “war bride.” She taught us not just language, but culture and history, lessons that have remained with me. I studied for five years but maybe not hard enough as kids do. I can roll my “r’s because I learned it early enough. Unfortunately I’ve forgotten most of my vocabulary, it’s been too long.
Best wishes in your travels.
R’s are no problem for me, either. Of course, I teach this sort of thing, as well.
Two questions as I get caught up in the small details:
What part of your house is one-story as seen in the photo? Thought it was all two.
When your friends are gone, you do the plants but who cares for their dog? Always wonder what people do because travel has always been so challenging for us with pets at home.
The kitchen. That’s why I comment that the ceiling is higher in the kitchen. You can tell by the interior pictures I have taken.
Sam goes into a dog care kennel that he really loves.
I’m sure the locals will appreciate you and Don trying to communicate with them in French. You will be terrific positive examples for Americans who go abroad!
Aw, thank you, Wendy!
Are you to have any rain later in the week due to the hurricane? It certainly has been a nasty year!!
I have to tell you about our rogue sunflower! I scattered a bunch of MG, zinnia & cosmos seeds in an empty bed in May. They grew beautifully and it has been so much fun to see how they all came up. IOne day, in the middle of that bed I noticed a sunflower coming up. I’m sure it was “donated” by a bird. This weekend, we had 20 (!!!!) blooms on that sunflower! It is amazing! I took many pictures so in January I can sit and stare at them. Mother Nature showing her sassy self!
I was up at 3:30 ~ so at about the same time! Thankfully, after about 10 min or so I did fall back to sleep. It makes for such a long day. I hope you had a nice brunch and can squeeze in a nap, too. I know I babble on some days, but to babble in French would be quite lovely, I think! Good luck to Don on the lessons.
I’m sure we will. We’re having quite a bit now, as well. Love hearing about your beautiful sunflower! How wonderful!
I had a brief 5 minute nap. Not nearly enough!
love zinnias and that you have so many to enjoy.
also love that you and don are practicing the french language … a good skill to help in your travels as well as a nice gesture! :)
sorry, sorry about the double job loss. :(
hope you sleep better tonight!
kathy in iowa
Thank you, Kathy!
Did anyone watch the first episode of The Miniaturist on PBS? I did, but not sure I will go back for the rest. I usually go for that kind of costume show and those were well done, and the doll house was intriguing, of course. But I was left in too somber a mood. So I don’t know.
I didn’t get to watch it yet. Don’s not really interested in it, so I’ll have to watch it On Demand. I started the book, but it’s very serious and a bit depressing and you have to be in the mood for it.
Thank you. My husband too was uninterested and worked on his iPad while I tried to watch. I learned about “sugar loaves” which I confess was new information to me. So there was that.
xo
I did not like the book at all…dark, gloomy and depressing…nasty people, nasty situations…I thought it was going to be about someone who made miniatures…boy was I fooled!…I know that the dollhouse is real as I looked it up online but I am sure the Dutch people in those times were a bit nicer than they were portrayed…
I think people latched onto it because it involved miniatures but the story was not a happy one!
That Rose is beautiful. The Morning Glory is such a sweet and lovely flower. Good luck to Don and learning French.
Marilyn
Thank you, Marilyn!
Your zinnias are terrific! I’ve always found that rainy Mondays are perfect for naps. Hope you got one in today! ;)
Thank you, Donnamae!
Your garden is hanging in there beautifully I’ve made a mental note to plant zinnias for next year. Yours are so lovely.
I always mean to beef up my high school French before a trip, but never quite do it well. Been meaning to check out Babbel before we go again in the spring. I’m afraid mostly what I know are swear words, which came in handy with our kids were quite small.
Like Merde? Ha!
That little rose is so pretty…I love that blush of pink on the peach color…and the Zinnias are like bright jewels on their tall stems!…I need to get out tomorrow and dump water out of any planters that are drowning from this rain…I’m sure you will be happy to take care of Rick and Doug’s plants for them…and then they can do the same for you and Don…perfect neighbors!!
Thanks for reminding me! I need to dump water, too!
I was up up at 3:30 today too! What the heck! I know when I’ve had significant disappointments during the day my nights are tough. Working on acceptance and perspective (and more acceptance) doesn’t fly for me at 4 AM. I sink into anger and self doubt and worse, self pity. Ugh. My husband is a free lancer and we’ve seen a difference in recent years with companies downsizing and his “market” flooded with additional talented and I’ll say it, younger people who used to have traditional employers. We are a year away from social security thank god but certainly counted on meaningful work for some years to come. Not happening. I obviously don’t know your situation but can relate I think in some way. Stay strong and know you are more fortunate than those who disappoint. I plan to spend my night counting my blessings and hope to sleep til the alarm goes off…for a change!
Middle of the night thinking is always dark – at least it is for me!
I’m so sorry about the work situation. I completely understand. It’s very disappointing, thinking it will be one way and finding out it isn’t going to go that way at all. xo
I meant to add I can relate as the wife of a free lance writer. Your situation is yours alone and I know your talent will me missed.
I know exactly what you meant. Thank you for understanding. I understand your situation, as well. xo