Happy happy joy joy

Děkuji,Leni.

Hiking Trip

A couple of Sundays ago, we hiked an easy 8 km to Raven Cliff Falls and back. Next time I want to take the longer hike to the suspension bridge above the falls.

Then we stopped to look around from the top of Bald Mountain

where it's possible to feel rather small in the great scheme of things.

Goose Reason to Go for a Walk

It's hard to get motivated to go outside when you have a new gaming system to play on. I was pleased that a walk and the opportunity to see some baby geese still beats out electronic entertainment.

Gifts

Bram saw this little racoon family today as they trundled along under the footbridge over the spring. By the time I got my camera, one of the babies had scampered away and the mother had retreated to safety up a tree with the other one. I confess I was filled with unaccountable joy at being allowed to see them. It always feeds something deep inside me to see a mother care for her babies even though today, that joy was tempered a bit by my feelings for the mother as she trembled in her fear and determination to keep her young safe.

I am grateful for gifts such as this, for being allowed to see that regardless of how I am feeling or how I think my world is, somewhere there is actually quite a lot going along that is just as it should be. It gives me some faith that things for me will eventually be as they should be, too.

They Have Legs

And they are going home today. It takes a lot longer than I thought for tadpoles to become frogs, and the time has come, though we won't be able to see their complete transformation, to return them to their home. I suggested that we put them in the little creek that runs behind our house, but Bram was insistent about the "environmental hell that would reap."

Is it your birthday, too?

My posts here are getting fewer and farther between. I wish I could say the same for my use of cliche here. Here's my cake, with 38.5% of my age worth of skinny sparkly candles on it. You can do the math. What? Did you think I'd just say it out loud? Je stači až jsem stara, ano? Please note that the cake is outside on the porch. Bram expressed some concern about a fire hazard even with the relative few candles.
This morning I bought a cake to share with my friends at the Pacolet Senior Center tomorrow and will collect my share of birthday hugs and good wishes from them then.
I had lunch at my favorite Thai restaurant and in the afternoon, snow cones made by Bram followed by this lovely tasty cake (with lemon pudding filling). For dinner, either the steakhouse or my favorite Mexican restaurant. Beer or margarita? Decisions decisions.

Yes, It's Me

And no, I didn't land a modeling job.

New Family Members

There are nine of them: Kameshia, Rachel, Morty, Alex, Bettykins, Walt, Lenička, Není zač, and Ička. My novena of fishes.

Our Current House Guests

Bram spent a good bit of his spring break exploring the canal behind the beach house. He found a Congo eel, whom he named Carl and who promptly bit the dust. Then he caught about 15 tadpoles. I agreed that he could bring four of them back home with us. And here are three of them, all lined up for their photo op (the fourth one is very small and very shy). I wonder if they feel like some kind of political prisoners.

My Own Personal Auto Bahn

I admit it. I have favorite words, and lots of them. In Czech, one of my favorites is kniha-book (and another, knihovna-library). In Spanish, it's mariposa-butterfly. And in German, well, nothing rocks my boat like auto bahn. I like to pronounce it like this, ow-toe baahn when I pretend I'm on it. I was thinking about this word on last Monday as I cruised along I-85 at a happy 155 kmh to get to Athens to the dentist. I thought about other words I like the sound of like ryby-fish, and trascocina-closet, and pamplemousse-grapefruit. The dentist trip wasn't as bad as it could have been. I nearly fell asleep (yes, he's that good, and that is why I drive two and half hours for him to fix my teeth). And to make my life ever so much better, I spent time before the dental appointment with Nancy and her son Anthony (an absolute charmer, whose self confidence is not only endearing, but enviable), and later, had coffee and more time with Nancy to talk. I forget how good it feels, how positively soul-reviving time with a friend can be. I've felt better all week because of it, even though I got a speeding ticket on Wednesday. And that time, I was thinking only of words like time, and late, and hurry.