Happy New year! I realize it’s the last day of May, but the last 6 months have been a real crazy blurry rollercoaster. Recap: I bought the adjoining property to mine. After a sureal scramble of begging, borrowing and almost stealing to close the deal on time. Followed by a nerve racking refi. If you want to know how someone without a job and almost no income secures a loan, I’ll happily tell you. A giant thank you to the bestie who trusted me with thousands of dollars until I could refi! Then what was going to be a couple coats of paint and a few weeks to get the 1980 manufactured home (yes, it’s a double wide trailer) ready to rent turned into almost 6 months of blood, sweat, tears and entirely way too much money. A big thank you to those friends and family who showed up to help me! I couldn’t have done it without you! And an extra super extra thanks to a few who went above and beyond to help me when I was at a real low point! I don’t wear desperation well. Hahaha Oh and my car was totaled by my insurance company after the christmas snow storm collapsed a carport. The chances of it getting stolen are much lower now that it already looks stolen.
But that’s not the entire rollercoaster! On January 11th I had to say goodbye to my oldest Kitty friend. Mirabelle’s body started to fail and she lost use of her back legs. Thank the kitty gods that the one mobile vet in the county was available and close by. I’ve said goodbye to many kitty friends and they were all very difficult. I didn’t realized that after living with someone since 2005 (we met in 2002) how much company she was and how many times a day I looked at her or talked to her. There was a real hole left in my heart and my home. It was the first time in a really long time that I actually felt lonely. Then to add insult to injury I got covid and had to be home alone sick without a kitty to cuddle. I’ve never been home alone sick without a kitty to cuddle. I hope you enjoy the last candid photo I took of Mirabelle before I knew her time was coming to an end. The pillow is appropriate for us both at times!
I know the news and lots of people say how mild onmicorn (I can’t call it by it’s real name) is but I’m here to tell you that after 3 weeks I didn’t feel like it was mild. The first 5 days felt like a cold and I kept working and powering through. On day 5 I lost all energy and my body had pain in the joints and muscles like I’ve never had before. It’s hard to explain the muscle weakness and fatigue but even carrying a water bottle felt like I’d been carrying a full 5 gallon bucket for miles. The brain fog is real. I felt like covid was eating my brain. I started to think that if I had long covid and was going to be in this much pain and have no energy every day that life wasn’t really worth living. This sounds extreme but I started thinking about people who live with long term chronic pain, I felt a lot of empathy for them and also a lot of respect when they keep living their lives. I’d really like to know what keeps them going. Hope, I suppose. I was fresh out of that for a few days.
Then on March 17th I met the new love of my life. Our paths crossed again a couple days later when he ended up in the neighbors trap! The universe sent me a giant tom cat. He’s now nurtured and ear tipped. I named him Tommy Tuntone Boca. Tommy for short or Mr. Tommy to you. Tommy has the loudest purr of any cat I’ve met. He’s a solid 16lbs of muscle. Mostly a big love bug but gets a little swatty at times. And needy at times, jealous of my phone, he’s grabbed it out of my hand more than once so that I could pay attention to him. He’s smart. His biscuits are deadly. I may or may not have a few scratches and puncture marks. I put a cat door in a window for him. On his first night here he curled up on Mirabelle’s bed next to her ashes. I hadn’t felt like she was ready to give up her place on the sofa even in the afterlife. Of course in the morning her ashes box was on the floor but I don’t think it was intentional, he’s kinda a bull in the china shop. I think Mirabelle sent me a kitty friend. I thought I would get a dog but instead I got a mouser who cuddles.
Things are looking up now that spring is here! I found Morel mushrooms in my lower terrace and I’m hooked! What a gift from the universe! I always assumed I’d love mushroom hunting but wasn’t a fan of eating them until now! Edible treasure! Gifts from the wood gods! Oh hell ya!!! (If you haven’t read Braiding Sweetgrass I highly recommend it, or listen to it! It’s not directly related to mushrooms but does discuss good ethic of foraging!) My veggie garden is 3/4 in, a bit late but our spring has been cold and damp! I’m practicing no dig this year and adding to the top of last years garden start. I’m headed outside now to finish up and do some much neglected work. Oh, and I’ve accidentally started a very small lawn care service aka weed whacking for old people. There’s more work than I have time or energy for! Want to move to Douglas county? I can hire you, seasonal work. Don’t want to move here? Just come visit and I’ll try not to put you to work.
It’s almost river time!
And you? How’s 2022 treating you so far?!
Xo
Serena
Ps. I didn’t have time to proof this. Daylight is burning! Don’t judge.
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