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Saying So Long For Now



On August 13, 2014 my gentle good girl, Lucy, left my side.  Funny ladylike loving demure friendly smart soft playful quiet loud precious.  She had all those qualities and more.



Lucy needed a lot of love when I met her.  She had no home stability, was abused and neglected the first eight years of her life.



I earned Lucy's trust and affection, minute by minute.  She gave an inch and I gave a yard until one day Lucy's world was stress-free, happy, and optimistic.   She realized that she was in a home with people who wanted her and accepted her completely.  



Last week she had an emergency health problem which surgery was supposed to have fixed, but the surgery created problems, too big for Lucy to overcome.

There are no definitive answers for why she could not recover.







I searched high and low, asked loads of questions, all without success.  Now there is a huge aching hole in my heart and soul.




Lucy made me a better woman by letting me shower her with love, compassion, kindness, and patience.

She built up my energy each day in return with little triumphs and encouragements.

I'm going to try and remember her life lesson and how it included me.  In time, letting her go, with all the pain and hurt, will probably soften, but never go away.

Paw prints on the heart are indelible.





Good night my sweetie pie, 
you're my best and most good girl.
I love you dearly and completely.
Lucy, you are my treasure. 





Thank you Linda, Stacy, and Debbie for your prayers and positive energies. Knowing that Lucy and I had you encouraging us was a blessing.


I wanted to let friends and readers know that this will be my last blog post for a while.

I hope you all get to experience a great love from a pet you treasure.

Until we meet again - my wish is for you to be well, kind, and content  ...






These Shoes Are Made For Walking, Shoe Makeover

glitter on the sidewalk shoe makeoverHere's a sneak peek at another project which may be completed sometime before the new year.

Joking aside, these shoes haven't been worn in years and the faux suede finish came off on my hand while I was cleaning out the closet.  Not wanting to toss them in the trash I wondered if I could cover the crumbling suede with something sparkly.

Never having worn glitterized shoes, I said I may as well try it even if it's just an art project and not wearable in the end.

So I decided to give the still comfortable shoes a fancy makeover.  First I cleaned and sanded away all the loose bits.  Then I used glue and paint with the glitter.  The black ice glitter was incorrectly named, as you can see it is actually gray on the back of the shoe on the right.

I went and bought some proper black glitter and will give it a another try and post an update once the shoes are ready for their moment in the dance spotlight.  Ahem.  Lucy and I will have a turn around the floor to Adele or Van Morrison, maybe both.

I just realized how clunky those heels look, alright, old-ladyish even.  My three inch heels have been traded in for more stability, especially needed when driving and sidewalk pounding make the feet scream.  I do love a nice heel, just don't have the need for them as often as I did in my fun, yet hard working days.

Now, to just get this song out of my head, love-  Love Shack!  Enjoy the video, glitter on the highway, glitter on the bed ...






Art Helps

Taking time away from the blog seemed like a sensible idea.  Then I discovered that getting mired in the trials and troubles of life and not filling up with inspiration from all of you didn't help to lift the grey veil.

As cycles go, it seems as if there is nothing but troubles. I back away from the internet, tv, radio, and all sorts of media.  I'm trying to salvage some peace.  

Shutting down everything helps for a short while. Sometimes I fill the gaps where the bad news keeps pushing out the positive, with work.

Cooking, cleaning, rearranging furniture, pulling weeds, emptying cupboards, redecoration, throwing things out, and so on ...  Just recently I finally tossed a barely used can of pricey hairspray.  Hairspray which I had kept for more than ten years.  In the old days, I used hairspray nearly every day, these days I use it maybe a few times a year.  I surprise myself with the reasons I save potentially useful things.  

Sometimes when I get bad news I can clean for a few days and not feel the pain.  Or ironing.  I've ironed forty pieces of clothing at one go.  These were clean items and items in the closet not worn.  I still remember that day, the day of ironing and not talking.  Bad news that changed the course of my life. These days it would be a blessing if I could iron for hours, but alas, the body can't do what the mind wants it to do.  

Pain is a funny thing.  You can ignore it or ease into it or face it with all the thunder in your soul.

These past few weeks, past two plus months more or less I have been facing a devil of a dilemma and shut myself off from everything but the necessities to survive.  

A couple of days ago I started to accept that there are more things I cannot do than I can ever do and used to do, so will make myself accept the new me.  You know that prayer, "To accept the things I cannot change ..."  
 
Art helps.  You don't have to be an artist to make art.  You just have to listen to your soul and be kind to yourself.

Your blogs are inspiring me and others to keep going in the places of loneliness and hardships, we keep each other company any time we connect.  With or without comments, with many or few readers, we leave a trail of ourselves, funny, clever, sad, creative; and these true cookies from the heart remain whether we delete or share. Thank you.