Animal Wednesday - Two snakes

We went bike riding last weekend and I brought my little 3x zoom camera hoping for some AW shots. We were screeching down a hill (what fun!) when I saw this little guy in the road. So I stopped and shot a picture, figuring I'd enlarge the photo since I can never get very close to a quick moving snake.

But I kept trying to get closer and he didn't move much and just let me walk up to him....

...and then I got even closer and he still didn't move altho I think I saw a glare in his eye....

....finally I was so close that I could see the patterns on his skin - isn't he a beauty?


Then that night we had an outdoor fire in our new firepit and look what I saw in the fire -


I googled "what does it mean when a snake image shows up in your life" and found this:

This a powerful totem -- it is
the symbol of transformation and healing.
The Snake is wisdom expressed through healing.

It is a protector and guardian totem,
along with its sister totems, the Dragon and the Serpent.

If a snake totem has come into your life, your creative forces are awakening.
Your intuition will sharpen and be more accurate.

Snake energy is the energy of wholeness, cosmic consciousness, and
the ability to experience anything willingly and without resistance.
It is the knowledge that all things are equal in creation.

It also signals a transition in your life.
New opportunities and/or changes.

Snake is fire medicine, the medicine of transmutation.
On a material level, it is vitality; on an emotional level, it is ambition and dreams;
on a mental level, it is intellect and power; on a spiritual level (the highest level),
it is wisdom, understanding and wholeness.

Snake magic is heavy magic.
Become the Magician and transmute the energy and accept the power of the fire.

The Snake is one of the symbols of Thoth.

oooohhh - I just got shivers - the "power of the fire"??? and a snake showed up in my fireplace???? wow. wow. And I do like the thought of an image of transformation and healing. I'll take it!!

Happy Animal Wednesday - and I hope your animal images are happy ones.

PS - here's something even stranger. My Chinese astrology symbol is....yup - a snake.

A Gorgeous Autumn Day

I got home on Friday - to beautiful Fall New England weather. Crisp, cool, sunny, blue sky - perfect for a bike ride in the woods which we did on Saturday.


How quickly it's gotten cool and fall-like here. Seems like yesterday that it was 90 degrees, and suddenly we have 50's during the night. I love the feeling in the air of pending hibernation, harvest and peaceful snowy nights. The colors are magnificent, and a joy to see. I love summer heat and long, long days - but I've always adored the autumn season - it suits me just fine.

My dear DH has given me lot's of wonderful presents this year for birthdays and anniversaries. A new camera is coming soon and I came home to one of those round fire pits for our patio - I've always wanted one. So after biking we dragged wood onto the patio and built a lovely fire. We sat and watched it for hours, chatting quietly about this and that but mostly just mesmerized by the flames. I had marshmallows of course, and toasted up too many.


We solved a few of the world problems by chatting about them, and then a few of our own. Had a quiet rememberance of 9 years ago and how hard it was to be apart that day and the following days.

A peaceful, relaxing, just-what-I-needed day and night.

No Animals on this Wednesday

Boo-hoo, boo-hoo sob sob sob - no time for animals today, I even forgot it was Wednesday. But it is and I'm in Florida driving from doctor to doctor and it's even my anniversary and no hubby with me.
BOO HOO!!! (I am imitating Emily so I guess that is my animal for this wednesday - ok KJ?)

On the funny side, yes, I am driving my MIL and her aide around to Doctor appointments and it is again a test of my patience. Like when I am in a parking lot and heading for a spot to park when MIL points out same spot and says "there's one!" (like I wasn't just driving right towards it!). Or as I get ready to drive off somewhere, and am going thru my own driving ritual (turn on car, put on seat belt, foot on brake, take off parking break) and she leans over in step two and TAKES OFF THE PARKING BRAKE.

Why would someone take off the parking brake when they aren't driving the car???

The day is filled with little tiny annoyances like that, and I am trying to be saintly and laugh it off. I did say (very nicely) that if she took off the parking brake again, or did anything like that - I was getting out of the car and going home. So there.

MIL is doing OK, but the whole process is somewhat depressing. She wants to try chemo, even tho the oncologist says that it's just buying time and will not cure anything. We have an appointment with another oncologist just because she wants someone with a more positive attitude. I actually understand her logic there, but....

I keep telling her that the positive attitude has to be in her own head, but understand how difficult that can be when a professional tells you the bald facts. I mentioned to her that perhaps she shouldn't ask them "how much time do I have" because they will answer with the truth.

Oy, oy, oy....

I am heading to a cousins house tonight to be with about 13 cousins for a New Year's dinner. I'm so looking forward to it, I can't tell you how much.

So, to all of you who celebrate these holidays' - Have a Happy and Healthy New Year. And to all of you who don't celebrate this holiday - Have a Happy and Healthy New Year!!!

Heading down to Florida again

Sat down last night to draw some pictures and this came out. Interesting, especially as I am heading down to Florida again today to spend the week with my MIL and various doctor visits. I'm not dreading it, which is good and hope to carve out some time for myself to work on some projects. DH laughs when I say that - he was there for two weeks and didn't have a moment to himself. But I think I'll manage something. I am bringing NO clothes - as I have enough stashed at Mom's house to last me for a long time. I AM bringing knitting, and a quilt that I am working on. And books. Maybe even time to redesign my blog!!

It struck me that I started off the summer giving up a Memorial day weekend to be with my mom during a minor surgical procedure that she had. I certainly didn't mind, altho' I was a tiny bit cranky about postponing some fun plans. And now here I am on Labor day, at the end of the summer, going back to be with MIL and all that she is going thru. And I am still a tiny bit cranky about giving up my vacation days to do this. So...what does this portend for the rest of the year? Who knows, and I can't plan ahead. Just try to go with the flow as much as possible.

Have a good week!!

The Reason I Never have a Kneaded Eraser When I Want One

Postcards

I finally got sick of painting furniture and sat down to do a little drawing. A few postcards emerged.

It's a gorgeous weekend here - we're off to a friends for a cookout. Hope you're having a lovely day.

Cute (I think so anyways) Project

I saw this idea in a magazine somewhere - just a mention of it. I thought it looked like fun so I decided to give it a try.

The weekend that my DH was away, I went to the thrift store and for $10.00 I got a small table in terrible condition. Just about 24 inches by 18 inches. Painted brown or shellacked and flaking off all over the place.

Here is the top in the original condition.



I turned it over, added wooden finials to the ends of the legs and two pieces of wood to one end between two legs, painted the whole thing, added a covered cushion and here it is...a small pet bed!!!


The things on the headboard came off an old frame, and are temporary here. I'm fooling around with making a plaque for the headboard with "DOG" or "CAT" but want to add that later for whoever get's this.


Ain't it cute???

( Yes, I realize that I need a more "professional" setting for photographs aside from the basement workshelf. But it's early and the light is bad everywhere else so I just did it. Gotta get with the background idea).

I'm making another cover for the bed part. I started out making a fitted cover but realized that it would be better to have a sort of fitted sheet. The one I was in the middle of making is actually a bit small, so I'll start again on that.

This was a fun, quick project....now....anyone have a tiny dog who needs a bed?????