WHEW! I'M GLAD THAT'S OVER!

I must admit, I've been in a funk.

I suppose the fact that I didn't sell much at the Horse Expo
AND I haven't sold anything at the Art/Antique place, didn't help.
What was really getting to me though was, how I was living my life.

It was getting to me, working at the kennel, taking care of all the pets
and doing through the same thing each morning and evening at home.
In between I had spent every moment working on my Art for these 2 places
and then I suddenly felt as though I had taken 3 big leaps forward
and then slipped off the path and was stuck in the mud.

I try to be optimist and I know I have so many friends out there urging me on
to keep going
but suddenly I just wanted to come home and do nothing.
I wanted to unplug and relax.
I mostly stayed off Facebook and Instagram except to idly thumb through images on my phone.

I felt like my life was just repetition and not fun.

There are a few positives that happened.
There is a new woman veterinarian at the clinic.
I actually know her,  not very well, but she was at the first clinic that I worked at.
I worked very early mornings then and she would be coming in as I was leaving.
I'm not sure if she remembers me or not.
Right now she's taking over all of Doc's surgeries except the bone ones.
He said that he brought her in as part of his plan to scale back.
He wants to just attend to his long time clients who request him
and of course all of his clients that need chiropractic adjustments
and ultimately just do chiropractic care
but he said he's not going anywhere for a while.
I made the comment the other day to my vet tech friend that I plan on Blue being around for another 20 years and he turned and said he wouldn't be around THAT long (he's Blue's vet) and that he'd be retired by then... (Doc is 2 1/2 years older than I).

And talking about age.
I've hired a new boarding person because one of my workers will be graduating soon from college and moving to Portland, Oregon.
I think everyone was very surprised as to who I hired.
Before I hired him, I told Doc that I had an applicant who the girls said was OLD.
I said that he wasn't old and then I told Doc the year that the applicant had graduated High School.
Doc was startled and said that was the year HE graduated and I said,
Yeah! See he's not old!
Truth be told, they might be the same age but if you put them next to each other, you would never guess it.
Doc looks many years younger but I think he has a young mind frame and that makes a big difference.
SO I hired a man who's older.
He's still working full-time and he has a cat that he loves to talk about but he said he needed to fill his off time and and he misses having a dog
and he has a work ethic.
My niece was worried about a man doing the job, because sometimes men can be a bit rough or harsh with animals but one day as she was leaving work she spied him through the window and saw him playing with one of the cats with a toy and then he stopped and hugged the cat and then went on his way to the dog kennels.
Lily called me right afterwards and said she liked that guy.
So there's that.
Although once the college girl leaves, I'll be working 6 days a week... at least for a while.

So all this good stuff and I was still dragging my feet.
I started devising alternative career plans.
I thought about caring for dogs in my home, just smaller dogs
and marketing the fact that they would be in a home environment.
Then I realized I have a full plate right now, several are elderly and
then there's Blue.

So I discarded that idea.... at least for now. Maybe as a side job in retirement, but not NOW.

Then I decided to open a Cat Cafe.
A place where I'd serve, coffee and teas.
Smoothies and tasty treats.
I'd have big comfy chair where people could lounge and read or work on their laptops.
And there would be cats.
Sweet sociable cats, Cats to relieve stress and comfort.
Maybe a big screen in the back area and big floor cushions to lay on and have movie nights....
But after talking with my sister about all the expenses to furnish the place, the rent, the little kids that would want to come in and run after the cats and...
Yep, nixed that idea too.

I did have a great talk with my sister though.
We had met for our monthly breakfast get-together at my favorite family-owned breakfast joint.
I wish we could do that more often.
Afterwards I drove her by a house in the neighborhood we grew up in.
It's for sale and needs A LOT of work but sits on an acre of land.
On either side of it, sits big gorgeous homes and the property taxes would probably be at least 5K a year.
Yep, out of the question.
Then we drove by a house that I've always loved and is now for sale.
It's only four blocks down and one block over from me.
I said to her that I would probably be stupid to move so close to where I live right now.
She didn't think it was dumb, not if I was moving to something better.
So, anyway-
The house is small with a little breezeway going to the attached garage and a nice level backyard.
Usually my sister is pretty bland in her responses about houses I find but she loved this one.
She said that if there was an Open House the next day (Sunday) she would go with me!
She NEVER wants to go to Open Houses.
So I went home and looked it up and found that it was "Sale Pending".
Sigh, Oh well.... it's not like my own home to sale ready.
It needs many many repairs and major de-cluttering.

So... I went to the library.
I checked out a bunch of children's books and poured over the illustrations.
Suddenly I wanted to start drawing again.
I'm going to re-write my Kanga book and making it less wordy.
But I've got clear ideas in my head about it.

I'm then going to start on my Blue book(s).
One for any age and also a series for kids about some of his adventures.
And I can see it in my head!
I'm dropping my altered photos and moving forward on the illustrations.
I'm working on simple little cards and prints and putting them for sale on my blog
and Etsy.

I ordered a couple of books off of Amazon about
non-traditional retirement ideas and also about de-cluttering and why a person accumulates so much in the first place and can't let stuff go.

Then the weather turned and it suddenly was nice outside.
I worked outside for a bit and finally was able to breathe.
Literally and figuratively.
I had forgotten how much I missed working outside, it's garden therapy.
I texted my sister that maybe I'll grow and sell cut flowers!!!
She didn't respond but I think I wear her out with my grand schemes and ideas.
She's probably just waiting to see if I change my mind again!
But whatever!
At least I'm full of ideas and motivated again!

BOOTH UPDATE and BAD DOG JIMMY

I've spent some time working on my booth.

Last month was my first month and I sold enough to make rent, pay the mall commission and to still get a modest little check.

So after picking up the check I promptly drove over to Michaels and spent it all on canvases and paper mâché pumpkins.

Sigh.

This last weekend's boarding schedule was the last "light" weekend for a while.
Possibly until after the New Year, so I decided to take the weekend PLUS Monday off, to do a few things.

Saturday I went to an Art fair.

I bought a metal owl for my fence.

I bought one last year that sits on a piece of a tree limb on a stake.
It's in the flowers at the front of my house and makes me happy whenever I see it.
When I saw that this year she had a single separate owl, one that could be mounted on the top of my fence I just had to get it.

(I'm still working on redoing my fence). 

Here's a close up of the owl.

Here's the owl sitting on top of the fence I made a few years back.
I made it from some new 2 x 4's and pieces of wood from my old fence.

I whitewashed the fence and it's faded now but I'll be taking it down next Spring when I get my new fence built.
I'm going to enclose a larger part of the yard this time but still leave the bottom of it wild and natural.

Here's another photo that I think is funny because it captures Jimmy jumping as high as he can and in mid "spring" as he tries to see me over the fence.

After the Art Fair I spent some time at the condo of a client of my sister's, doing their gardening.
I dead-headed and watered.

(My sister is on vacation in Vermont so I'm doing her some of her gardening side business while she's gone.)

Sunday I painted my fence posts. I think it's easier before putting them up.
Then I painted a base coat on the pumpkins and also dragged more stuff out to go to the booth.

As I was painting the pumpkins at the kitchen table and a light breeze came through the window,
I thought how nice and peaceful the day was.

Everyone was scattered about, sleeping or chewing on their bones.
When suddenly I thought I heard a different sound. I stood up and looked into the living room.

My beautiful Mid-Century Modern sofa.

I love that damn thing. 

It was such a rare find and a real steal.

I noticed some "cracks" in it from Blue standing up on it and circling before laying down.
I had been researching how to hopefully repairs the cracks and had been to several fabric stores and hardware stores looking at things.
Well, I heard this sound and I stood up and caught Jimmy Chew in the act!

I gotta tell you, I freaked out!

I was SCREAMING and having a real meltdown.

I went to swat his butt but he was too quick, so instead I hollered him and at most everyone else to go outside.

I went back to my pumpkin, finished the coat, washed out my brush , took a deep breath and let them back inside.

I was still mad but calmed down a bit.

Jimmy refused to look at me, I know he knew that he was in BIG trouble.

Monday, I went out and spent a lot of time rearranging my stuff in the booth.

I crammed it full. I prefer a more sparse look but I need to get this stuff moving!

I am also running a 20% off sale on everything in my booth for a limited time.

(I noticed that a lot of the other booth vendors do that too)

I just want the stuff to GO, so that I can move more STUFF out there!

After that, I went and watered my sister's client's flowers and then drove to her house and watered all her flowers.

Finally I went home, feed my critters, did a couple loads of laundry and then my weekend was over!

Wow! Those 3 days flew!

So, how was YOUR weekend?

How was your Holiday Weekend?

How was your weekend?

I worked Saturday and Sunday.

It was a total madhouse, filled to the brim with pets.

Lots of big rowdy dogs and lots of special need animals.

A 15 year old Vizsla who wobbled as he walked so we have to lay down yoga mats for him so that he didn't slip on the floor.

Then there's the ancient Pugs.

The Chihuahua with a heart condition

and the diabetic cat that needs her insulin.

Yep, pretty much a typical weekend. LOL!

When I wasn't at work, I was at home working on the yard.

I got all my garden stuff out of storage.

My birdbath.

I LOVE that thing.

The glaze on it formed a "moon".

A wonderful accident. 

When I saw the birdbath a few years back at the Garden Center, I had to have it.

(the fact that it was marked down for an End of Summer Sale sealed the deal.)

But my astrological sign (if you believed that sort of thing) is ruled by the moon.

and then my name means Moon Goddess.

So yeah, I love it.

I also got this fountain at another End of Summer Sale.

So many people have walked by my house and commented on it.

I like the soft sound of water.

Last Fall I dug up my front yard that was a huge mass of perennial flowers and I put down grass seed.

This Spring I had to buy a lawnmower!

I haven't had one for years, I just got by with a weed-whacker.

I found this electric one on Amazon and yesterday it worked wonderfully!

It has a little grass catcher that attaches to the back and I had to empty it a couple of times but

I was in Heaven.

The smell of fresh cut grass is one of my favorite scents of all time.

I made two BIG flowerbeds that I will show later when the flowers have grown.

I dragged a big wood workbench out of the basement and up the cellar steps and across the patio.

I'm going to make it into a potting bench.

I hung up new line on my clothesline that I put in last Fall.

I was outside non-stop.

My neighbor (the nice one) came out several times each day to do yard things and commented about how I had to be exhausted.

He just doesn't know how I do it, he said.

I laughed and said that I just have to.

But then I got to thinking about a comment a mother of a friend of mine had said many many years ago.

She had shook her head at her daughter and me as we left to go work out.

She thought we were foolish and wasting our money.

She said she got her exercise taking care of the house.

She said cleaning and tending to her SEVEN kids kept her fit.

But her point was, keep busy and take care of what needs to be done

and it might just be all the exercise a person needs.

That's how I'm going to view it from now on.

It's my exercise.

Tonight, I'm exhausted

and HOT. 

The temperature shot up and it's muggy.

We are all hot.

Poor Ghost was laying in front of the window hoping to catch a breeze.

So, that's how my holiday weekend went.

How was yours?