Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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You are here: Home / Archives for birthday

Miscellany

November 15, 2013 at 9:00 am by Claudia

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This is Scout sleeping on the floor in the living room. Check out the rug. She has taken to sleeping with her right rear leg thrust under the rug. I don’t know quite how this happens but I can assure you that the end result is a rug with the edge curled under. And I don’t mean slightly. Every day I try to smooth it out and get it to lie flat again, but Miss Scout, in her later years, has decided she likes sleeping this way and my efforts have proved fruitless.

She had a bath the other day and her coat is sort of wild and curly and matty. This girl hates to be brushed, so making her stay still for a few minutes of brushing is problematic. I’ll keep trying.

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The visit to the DMV was surprisingly easy. When I got the notice that I had to renew my license this year, I also got a notice that I had to have my vision checked. There were inserts giving all sorts of information as to where I could have the test done – eye doctors, pharmacies, etc., so that I wouldn’t have to wait in line at the DMV. It seemed complicated. I didn’t want to have to make an appointment elsewhere in order to read a basic eye chart and then deal with sending it all in to the DMV or filing it online.

We have a Mobile DMV unit in our county. Yesterday was the day it was scheduled to be in a nearby town, so I figured, why not try to get the whole thing done there? For once, there was a very short line. I think I waited 10 minutes for my turn. And in the end, all I had to do was read the bottom line of the eye chart. Which I did. Then I opted to have a new photo taken because the last photo is from 12 years ago. Unfortunately, I don’t look like that now. Five minutes inside the truck. Done.

Wow. A good experience at the DMV.

I finished How the Light Gets In and am now officially in mourning. Quite frankly, Louise Penny has made it exceedingly hard for other authors, including those I have to review. It’s quite an adjustment to go from her deep, richly textured, seamless prose to prose that doesn’t flow quite as freely, which seems labored in comparison. I have to shake her off in order to read a review book with an open mind.

Every once in a while, I consider trying to write a mystery. I started one several years ago. Anyway, as that little thought pops into my head, I read Penny and think….No way. Don’t even try it.

I bow at her feet.

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Though most everything outside has bit the dust, I valiantly continue my battle with the elements for the sake of my potted plants. They’ve been indoors for three days and today is the day they can return to their positions on the porch. Until there’s another night with frigid temperatures. I almost let them go the other day, knowing it was going to go down to the twenties. But I couldn’t.

I hope they appreciate all this maneuvering. Note to the universe: I need a greenhouse.

And a fully paid for home. And another car. And some built-in bookshelves.

And finally, Don keeps asking me what I want for my birthday. The rather pathetic reply? Snow boots. Or work boots.

How boring. My shoe size has increased in the last two years and I have very few shoes that fit. But snow boots? Really, Claudia? That’s the best you can come up with?

Ideas, anyone?

Happy Friday.

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Filed Under: birthday, books, life, Scout 42 Comments

Happy 90th to my Dad

September 28, 2013 at 7:59 am by Claudia

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Dad is 90 years old today.

His name is Gordon, by the way. He went off to serve in WWII at the age of 18 and came back home when he was 22. He earned a Purple Heart. He corresponded with a girl from his neighborhood while he was overseas. She was given his name by a neighborhood group that was supporting the soldiers and started writing him letters. A few days after he got home, they met for a soft drink at the neighborhood soda fountain. He told her he was going to marry her and she thought he was awfully cheeky. Six months later, they were married.

They eventually moved to a suburb of Detroit where they raised 4 children. Dad worked for Michigan Bell Telephone Company for 40 years. He loved to go fishing, to take us camping, to spend time at the cottage on a lake that his dad built when dad was a toddler.

He’s a complicated man. He has his demons. But he loves his family with a devotion that is unmatched. He visits my mom, now in a nursing home for over two years, every day. He loves his adorable cats and they love him. He still drives, though he doesn’t drive in bad weather or at night. He still fixes things around the house. (My dad can fix most anything, by the way.) He loves nothing more than to sit in his chair and look out the window at all the birds and waterfowl that hang out near the pond. It gives him peace.

He’s lonely. It’s tough without my mom. He has lots of aches and pains and some days are really tough. But he hangs in there.

My dad is a good guy. He’s incredibly generous and has been there whenever we have needed him, with advice, with acceptance, with money, with a hug. He makes sure to visit other residents of the nursing home that he has met during the past two years. Some of them are all alone, so he stops to talk to them. He is a kind man.

So Happy Birthday Dad! Happy 90th Birthday to you! I’m far away from you physically, but you are in my heart.

Today we celebrate you.

(I’d love it if you left a birthday message for my dad. I thought I would print them out and send them to him. Thanks so much.)

Love,

ClaudiaSignature140X93

 

 

Filed Under: birthday, Dad 100 Comments

The Funky Patio

June 24, 2013 at 8:00 am by Claudia

As you read this, I will either be driving Don to Williamstown, MA or I’ll be on my way home. It’s an all day event, this journey to Williamstown. He’ll be there for 5 weeks, performing in Pygmalion. It’s the same production that was at the Globe last winter, with the addition of some new cast members. The great thing is that this time around, I will get to see it! It was a huge hit at the Old Globe and I’m sure it will be again.The Berkshires are beautiful, one of my favorite places. In fact, it was during another acting job in the Berkshires that I came out from San Diego to visit Don and we started to think about the possibility of moving out East.

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You remember the Funky Patio? It’s the little makeshift patio we threw together a few years ago. It’s right outside the gate that leads to the kitchen door. Sometimes we like to hang out there because it’s a little bit further back from the road than the porch is. And I love those chairs – they’re very comfortable and they rock gently.

The other day I bought some plants for the galvanized bucket. Everything is done on a small budget here and I had to wait until last week until I could buy the plants. It’s still not finished, but here’s what I have so far.

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I like putting bright, vivid colored flowers in this planter. Such a nice contrast to all the green that surrounds the patio.

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There’s some lantana in the mix – I used to use lantana a lot when I lived in San Diego, but this is the first time I’ve used it here.

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My mom gave me that piece of pottery many years ago. I like using it for these pretty flowers.

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That shade of purple is amazing. I love seeing purple and green together.

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Normally, I plant impatiens in the white barrels, but last year’s had that fungus that is infecting impatiens. So I went with geraniums. I think I have to add some more plants to fill in the bare spaces – have to get on that!

Yesterday morning, I sat in one of the white chairs and closed my eyes. I listened to the sounds of all the birds, to the faint hum of a plane overhead, to the sounds of the cicadas. It’s important to just be sometimes. To simply listen to the natural world going on around us.

I know the birds have been using the birdbath lately because I can see the telltale splash marks. Yesterday, I saw one of our catbirds taking a bath. Catbirds are known to love birdbaths and this little guy dunked his entire body at least 6 times. Such a joy to watch.

When we first moved here, we had a family of groundhogs living under our shed. They are gentle, gentle creatures – vegetarians – and I used to see their babies all the time. I just remarked to Don that we haven’t seen them in a few years and what did I see the other morning? A lovely groundhog chewing on the grass near the shed. They are so timid that the minute they hear anything, they race for cover. I saw him again today and the minute Scout went out, he ran back under the shed. He’s clearly living there. Or she is clearly living there. Did you know they make elaborate tunnels? One to eat in, one to sleep in, one for elimination. They are quite meticulous and clean. And fascinating. I’m so glad they are back – though I’ve only see one so far.

It’s Don’s birthday today. Happy Birthday, my love.

Happy Monday.

Don’t forget to visit my post about Newtons cookies to learn about Healthy Eating on the Go and some yummy treats.

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Filed Under: birthday, Don, flowers, patio 23 Comments

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Welcome!

Welcome!

I live in a little cottage in the country with my husband. It's a sweet place, sheltered by old trees and surrounded by gardens. The inside is full of the things we love. I love to write, I love my camera, I love creating, I love gardening. My decorating style is eclectic; full of vintage and a bit of whimsy.

I've worked in the theater for more years than I can count. I'm currently a voice, speech, dialect and text coach freelancing on Broadway, off Broadway, and in regional theater.

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