Rafi & Chandra’s garden

I ALSO LOVE THE FAMILY DOG, GERMAINE, WHO I’M CUDDLING HERE

HUMMINGBIRD VISITING CHANDRA & RAFI’S GARDEN

Before my son Rafi was old enough for school, prior to my leaving for work each morning we’d do what I called our ‘Inspection Tour’ of our garden, which I loved. He grew to love it too.

RAFI AND CHANDRA’S GARDEN

RAFI & CHANDRA’S GARDEN

MORE OF RAFI & CHANDRA’S GARDEN

Together we’d look for new blossoms, fruit or maybe even a baby tomato or radish.

Rafi named all our plants and we greeted each by name with a hearty ‘Good morning’.

(One was called ‘George’ because Rafi so enjoyed the ‘Curious George’ books.) I still believe plants like to be talked to.

I’m not surprised that today Rafi loves his own garden. Fortunately, his dear Chandra loves it as well and they spend countless happy hours together working to make and keep it beautiful. Mine was nice enough, but theirs is absolutely gorgeous!!

Aside from being spoiled rotten when I recently visited, I had the pleasure of looking directly out the door from my own room right into the colourful garden. What a beautiful sight to wake up to. What more could anyone want?

MORE OF CHANDRA AND RAFI‘S GARDEN

Every morning Rafi brought me coffee and breakfast and brought Germaine down to visit me. Chandra, Remy and Rafi carried meals down on large trays from upstairs for us to eat either in the garden, or in my suite. I gloried in being spoiled.

After I left, poor Germaine missed me and waited for me outside my door.

I GUESS GERMAINE MISSED ME. I MISS HIM TOO!

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Covid-19: A List…

COVID-19: A list….

Lately someone on the radio said he starts each day by listing 10 things he is grateful for. This being Covid:19, I decided to try for 19. Here goes…

I am grateful for:

1. My children and their loved ones. Their frequent calls give me warm fuzzies. (The border is closed, we can’t visit.)

2. Local special friends who are like family, especially Amy, who drives me everywhere I must go. She doesn’t want me on public transit yet.

Thank you Aina

3. Aina Wifolk (1928-1983) Look her up on Wikipedia…

4. The beautiful mountains I see from my window. I don’t climb them, but sure like seeing them.

5. The white clouds that frequently reach their arms out and around said mountains in loving-like embraces.

6. The lit ski hill which I see every night. I don’t ski, but enjoy imagining others on it.

Hummingbirds bring me joy.

7. The tiny hummingbirds who visit the feeder on my balcony and then flit away.

8. The bean plant that struggled so this year to provide me with a crop of one solitary bean. (The weather wasn’t kind to growing things.)

9. Chandra, my dear daughter-in-law, who bought me snow peas to plant. They thrived. (I don’t know why) I had a lot of those.

10. The flowers in their containers on my balcony which come back again and again.

They help us get what we need.

11. Those who keep our local shops going during this pandemic so I can safely obtain whatever I need.

12. The kind neighbour in my building, who put out a flowering plant and card this week because one of our long-time residents passed away.

13. The neighbours and friends who emailed to offer me help should I need it during these trying times.

14. The people who maintain those little free libraries in my neighbourhood. How would I survive without them. (Our libraries are closed and I’m an avid reader.)

15. The thoughtfulness of daughter Susan, who sent me a wonderful birthday package including a used book about ancient China. She knew I would enjoy it. I did.

16. Catherine, who had read a ‘large print’ book, enjoyed it and so brought it to me. It was good and extra easy on my eyes.

Free libraries on our local streets.

17. The strangers who say hello or chat with me from a safe distance when I walk ALONE each day. It makes this pandemic livable.

18. All the people in my life who care about me.

19. All of you who read my blog. Writing these posts gives me additional challenges and pleasures during these crazy times.

Did I really need this???

I was content with my old computer. When the machine was about 11 years old, the Apple store which sold it to me refused to service it because, they said, it was too old. Ha. I just had it repaired elsewhere and managed my email, wrote my blog, and daughter Susan had just shown me how to take a photo with it although I’d already had it for about 14 years. Start over? What? Are you nuts?

This year I was told I could no longer do my tax return on it; and Rafi could no longer save my butt using TeamViewer, which

I DO get desperate

had been useful when I was desperate. Where computers are concerned, I DO get desperate — often. WWWEEELLLLLL, I had to rethink what I thunk. (I also admit I was terrified at having to learn how to use a new electronic device.)

 

Probably how poor Rafi felt

COVID:19 came along and thus Rafi is spending more time at home. He suggested this was a good time for me to take the big step. He chose a computer to suit my needs and promised to be helpful AND patient. He’s managed that — almost always. (Don’t be judgmental, I’m not YOUR mother. Lucky you!)

Because of everything else happening, our tax people gave us extra time to file, so the first thing I attempted on this brand-new machine, which can do 98% more than I’ll ever need, was to do my tax return. Well folks, I’m not totally useless  — I’m just technologically challenged. I made it! I did my return and e-filed it! Congrats to me. Yeah!

Andrew, my priceless local ‘grandson’ ordered the computer online for me and set it up when it arrived. He spent oodles and oodles of time transferring information from my old computer. I never could have managed without him.

Wouldn’t you like to open your computer and see this?

Then, just to make me happy, he managed to find a beautifully-coloured hummingbird for my desktop. I love it! Wouldn’t you like to open your computer and see this? (I love Andrew and he is gorgeous, but I didn’t know how to take photos yet the other day when he was here.) I am, indeed, a lucky gal.

Vinson, keeping me sane

Today, Vinson, my other handsome and also priceless local ‘grandson’ came by and transferred the rest of what was left over. He’s keeping me sane. I am now exploring the possibilities of managing to function. However, the question is, will I be able to get this post out to you???

Is Love for the Birds?

Photo by Timothy Stark

Who’d a thunk it? I’m in love again. Yup, head over heels. I wait for him every evening, hoping he will call. I drop everything the moment he arrives. You see, I want to spend every moment I can with him. I’ve no idea when or even if he will show up, but I’m just so thrilled to see the guy, I don’t complain about his unannounced arrivals and erratic behaviour.
How did we meet in the first place? He dropped by while my San Francisco loved ones were visiting. What does he look like? He’s gorgeous, sleek and slender, full of energy and constantly on the go. While he’s here, I forget how much I worry about him when he doesn’t stop by for a day or so.

Am I behaving like a teenager? I guess so, but its been so long since I’ve had such a cute guy in my life — you’ll have to forgive me. So I worry. What could have happened to him? Why didn’t he make it tonight? Dangers lurk in every corner, right? Will he come back? Did he find someone else with more to offer? Is her place more interesting than mine? Yes, I worry — I do that extremely well.
Sometimes I think of Randy Bachman’s song ‘No Sugar Tonight’, which he says he thought of by

Randy Bachman who wrote ‘No Sugar Tonight’

hearing an angry wife scold her husband saying he’d get ‘no sugar tonight’. I want to threaten him accordingly, but I’m so smitten, those ideas fly away the minute I see him again. Once here, he dips his beak into my sugar water — and he’s on his way.
Since they sprayed our city for Gypsy Moths, I hadn’t seen any hummingbirds around. (Nor any butterflies.) I hope they managed to kill the darn Gypsy Moths, for goodness knows, they seem to have killed everything else. After several years of no hummingbirds, I gave up completely on the little darlings and took down my feeder.

I hadn’t seen any hummingbirds for so long, I took my feeder down

Well, looks like they’re back! I love them so, I stop everything when I see one at my feeder, which Rafi put back up for me while he and his crew were visiting. What happened was we all saw one at the blossoms on my balcony, and I was so excited, I immediately woke up my feeder sleeping in the closet.Now, Rafi , who is used to my nonsense, gets excited phone calls from me saying:

hummingbird feeding

‘He’s here. He’s here!’
‘How do you know its the same one?’ He once asked.
‘I don’t know, but I hope it isn’t. I hope he’s spread the word to all the hummingbirds in the neighbourhood. I love them all.’
Well, you didn’t expect me to love only one, did you? Remember that old song: ‘Darlin’ You Can’t Love One’?

They’re so beautiful — ‘Darlin’ You Can’t Love One’