The feeders are busy in my back yard as adolescent mourning doves, house finches, and young cheeky squirrels bulk up in the summer sun. Birds I've seen this week: northern cardinal, mourning doves (lots of 'em), song sparrow, house finch, catbirds, tufted titmouse, blue jay, woodpecker (probably hairy woodpecker), big greedy park pigeons, and my favorite for this week....lots of american goldfinches. Bright neon yellow birds flashing across the yard from coneflowers to feeders and back...getting ready for their breeding season which is later than many birds. They are like flying flowers!
photo courtesy of www.finchworld.com
After 4 days of complete recuperation I ventured out for an hour to book group. Jerry drove me and I came home early. I did really great. I'm tired. But it really does help to move around...much less cramps and twinges.
I love this book group. I started it through our Newcomers Group almost 6 years ago now. We meet one evening a month (with Augusts off). We've read a wonderful variety of books, have had wonderful conversations (on and off topic), enjoyed great desserts and goodies, and drank our share of wine (one of the really good things about evening book group over the morning book group is the wine!). Since last September we've had a little growth spurt in membership and the new voices are a wonderful addition. I feel so fortunate to have this group in my life and I will miss it when I move to Florida.
And that would be gall stones...not the British unit of weight measurement. Surgery (laproscopic) went perfectly. spent the night. home by 10am. napping, walking, drinking lots of water and napping some more. glad its over. sorry...for the gruesome of you...there will be NO pictures of the gallstones, i did not ask for them as a memento...I carried them long enough.
Back to napping with the cats.
I wanted to let you know about Kiva (www.kiva.org), a non-profit that allows you to lend as little as $25 to a specific low-income entrepreneur in the developing world.
You choose who to lend to - whether a baker in Afghanistan, a goat herder in Uganda, a farmer in Peru, a restaurateur in Cambodia, or a tailor in Iraq - and as they repay their loan, you get your money back. It’s a powerful and sustainable way to empower someone right now to lift themselves out of poverty.
I've been lending since November of last year. It's a great organization. Check it out: www.kiva.org.
3 years ago this month Jason and I took a great 2 week trip through Ireland. This is one of my favorite pictures (and memories) of that trip. Jason and a westhighland terrier that adored him on the steps of Castle Craig just outside Galway where we stayed for 3 nights.
I had such a great evening last night with 3 of my galfriends, Marda, Mariadela, and Em. We had dinner at Tangos and laughed and talked and laughed and talked and even cried a little. We talked of weddings and illness, new roofs and gallstones, the New Yorker cover and the demise of good taste, mothers...fathers....friends, rubber ducks, and good books we've read. A good group, we four...only thing better would have been Peg making 5.
The Soul beat the Cleveland Gladiators 70 - 35...the team is headed for the Arena Bowl in new Orleans on July 27th...A convincing win. A very happy crowd. A great 5th Season. It's been fun!
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Go Soul!
Since our annual physical at Mayo Clinic in June, I have managed to drop 5 lbs (afer gaining 10 over the last year. I've had several friends ask me "what is your secret"...here it is: The Recipe for My Wonderful Diet.
Just by the hair on their chinny-chin-chin...the Soul squeaked by the New YOrk Dragons to get to the next round of playoffs on July 12th. So 3rd round playoffs...yippee yahoo...
