Super Excited!!

I booked my plane tickets to head to the west coast to visit our very own Laurie and Lavada in September. I’ve had the pleasure of hanging out with Laurie at RWA in NYC a few years ago and am looking forward to getting to meet Lavada in person. I just know I’m going to adore her as much as I do Laurie. It’s always cool to meet people in person that you know online. It’s even better when you find they are as real and personable in the flesh as they are online and that you “get” each other. Having romance writing, reading and love of family and friends in common is already a great way to start a relationship, right?

The only downside to the trip? The flight times were awful. I could either get up before dawn or fly all night. UGH.  I picked the up at dawn since I will have to travel for work on the Monday after I get back and knew I would need to sleep in a bed. Why, oh why, does the travel industry want to punish people?

Jillian and Laurie at RWA

I’m adding a link to a video to See You in September even though most of the lyrics don’t match since they are about lovers,  but I adore the lyrics about counting the hours and the minutes. 🙂

Have you ever met someone you’ve bonded with online? How did it go? Were they what you expected?

Iguanas

I know these guys are popular as pets. For some people that is. I don’t know anyone that has them so my first encounter with one was recently in Cancun. They would come out on the walks and for me it was like seeing a snake. Something that makes the feet move while standing in place.

There were quite a few hanging out on the grounds of the resort we were in. When we got home I looked up some information on these critters and found out that Iguanas have excellent vision. They can see shapes, colors and movement from a long distance. Now that was something I think was better found out after I got safely home. Especially wearing flip flops. It makes my toes tingle just thinking about it.

We thought they were protected but I didn’t find anyplace that stated that they were. For me I’d rather not find them in my garden. Guess it’s one plus for living in a northern climate.

Moving from Rue’s view

Moving, cats don’t do moving. At least they don’t if they aren’t forced to. My humans were sneaky. First they moved what they call the spare room and I called ‘my room’.

Now mind you I’d just customized the new box springs they bought. I had a big hole, well maybe like a quarter of the underside open on the old one. On this new one I just put in a hole big enough for me to get in. Anyway, one day they came in and whoosh it was gone. All the other furniture in my room was too though I didn’t really care about it.

Then a few weeks later came the morning of the BIG move. My humans marched into the master, they call it master but …. Anyway the first thing they take out is, you guessed it, the bed. Now where is this cat supposed to hide? I crunched down behind the toilet hoping they wouldn’t snatch it out. Then Katie, I like her, came in and made me a hiding place in the closet. Through the day I could hear things moving but I didn’t come out of my snug hidie hole to look. Oh woe is me, my whole world was being whisked away. Then Kristie, I thought she was my friend, took me out of the closet and shoved me into a carrier. On the way I could see what was left of home. No couch, no chairs, no table and horror’s no bed.

I hate that carrier, usually when they put me in it I end up on a metal table but this time they put me in a little room with whew, my potty. They didn’t make me get out they just opened the door. Well that wasn’t too bad.

Fast forward — my human opened the door and I snuck out and hey I liked what I saw. The master bed, my bed, my cat tree, my couch and chair.

Humans note:
Rue took to the new house like she’d personally selected it. I am so glad she’s with me or as she would say, I’m with her. The picture is a recent one, taken in front of the fireplace where she particularly likes.

Valentines Day

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day and with it one of my favorite memories.

When the kids were little I’d get a sack or box of Valentine cards and they would sit with a list of their classmates and carefully pick the right card for each one. I can still see them sitting at the kitchen table.

Then the day would come and they’d bring back the ones they’d received. It was always a big thing for them to come home from school and share them one by one.

The year Rick, our youngest was in the first grade Valentines Day was an unseasonably warm afternoon. I came home to find him sitting on the neighbor’s front steps. Caroline was close to eighty, a tiny little lady that almost always wore a dress. Their heads were close together and you could see Ricky telling Caroline about each card as he handed them to her. So much patience and love was in that picture. It will forever live in my heart and mind.

We all have memories we cherish, that leave indelible images in our minds. What about you, I’ll bet there are millions of Valentine memories out there. Some romantic, some nostalgic, some just special.