So here's the short of it, 
We stand at the Gate of the Year...

And here's the long.  

King George VI used this quote in his address to the British Empire at Christmas time in 1939.  It sure has been a guiding light for me over the past few years.  I don't know much about Poet Minnie Louise Haskins, but whatever else about her -- she got it just right on this one.


     And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year:
     "Give me a light that I may tread safely into the unknown."
     And he replied: 
     "Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand of God. 
     That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way. 

So here's the short of it, 
 Happy New Year Kitty Annie!

And here's the long.

After the incident with Plato being kidnapped (or would that be catnapped) and finally being rescued but going to live with another family - then Hershey going to live on a big farm, Mom has taken in another cat.  Our vet had an older cat who had been surrendered by her family.  She's a small calico cat who is probably 10-12 years old and has been an indoor kitty her whole life.  The Vet knew that Mom was looking for a calico, and Mom was happy to have Annie coming to live out her life there.

Now - the only thing is that winter is coming on and Annie had to understand when she came to live with Mom that she was going to be an outside girl.  I've been worried that as the weather got colder that she would be uncomfortable outside.  I've been trying to help Mom figure out something.  Mom had fixed up a box with styrofoam around it, but we really worked it out today! We built a cat house!

Here's the master plan we ended up using to make Annie's house.  Our tub was 18 gallon not the larger 25 gallon.  We used some Tyvek scraps leftover from a project and cut them to fit into the crate.  It's big enough for little Annie Cat to get in, turn around, sit up, and curl up, but small enough to conserve her body heat.  I'm on a mission to get a mylar blanket and some straw to finish it up.  Everything I've read says that straw is the very best bedding - but Mom and I only have wet straw that's been out in the weather at this point.  

I got Mom about 2 this afternoon and we came up to the house and worked on Annie's new home.  Within about an hour Alan, Mom, and I had it pretty much put together.  Mom and I took it down to her house and put the finishing touches on it.  We got it set up in the place where the other one was for the time being.  We took the styrofoam from the box Mom had built and used it to further insulate.  Mom used the old throw rug that had been in the bottom of the old box in the new digs. Before I left, Kitty Annie was investigating her new house.  I'm pretty convinced that she'll get into it when the temperatures drop.  And I'm pretty relieved to think that she's got a place to stay dry and get in out of the cold. 

If you want to see the directions the link is here.  You can also google outdoor cat shelter to see some other variations for this.   Just below is a picture that's really similar to the way Kitty Annie's shelter turned out!

So here's the short of it, 
Mom's heat went off!

And here's the long.

I've been at Mom's twice a day since she's been gone to Atlanta.  This morning when I got to the house it was a little cooler than I thought it had been, but I was on my way to a haircut and to run errands, and didn't really think much about it.

This evening when I got back to turn off the TV and feed Kitty Annie, it was markedly cooler.  Alan came down and helped me look around.  We checked all the breakers - fiddled with the thermostat - and then called Mom. She gave me the contact information for the Heating and Air company and we got on with figuring something out.

It turns out that the lovely young woman that I spoke with remembered the house and the work.  She had lived in Brainerd for some years and knew exactly where we were located.  She helped walk me through several things to check on, but nothing really helped.  So I'm glad Mom is safely in Atlanta in a warm house for tonight, and I'm hoping that we'll get someone there to get it fixed before she's home tomorrow.  It's supposed to be getting pretty cold these next few nights!

So here's the short of it, 
This one is in memory of The King.  

And here's the long.

Tonight I was inspired to have an Elvis Presley style dinner.  You know he was famous for loving grilled peanut butter and banana sandwiches.  I've read that he would eat 12 - 15 of them at a sitting.  I looked and looked for a recipe so I could provide a link, but every single recipe looked to me like a cook or chef wanted to fancy it up a bit.

Elvis liked good thick white bread.  I understand that he didn't like the bananas mashed - but preferred them cut lengthwise.  He also wanted the peanut butter on both sides of his bread.  Apparently sometimes he liked bacon, fried up very crisp, on his peanut butter and banana sandwiches.

I did something a little bit different - since Elvis was just the inspirational starting point.

I started off with two slices of Honey Nut Stollen, my Christmas bread.  Both of them got peanut butter - then the long slices of bananas.  They grilled up just wonderfully.  I added a little extra of the icing and honeyed pecans that I use on the loaf and for a little extra touch.

Thanks Elvis for the dinner inspiration!

So here's the short of it, 
Today was a kind of lazy day! 

And here's the long.

Well, I did get the refrigerator cleaned out, but except for that I was not particularly productive today -- and it felt pretty good too!  Alan and I did venture out to see The Hobbit late this afternoon.  I read that book.  I don't remember it being one fight, after another.  I thought there were much more interesting dialogues and lessons in goodness.  Maybe those things don't sell?? The special effects and the location were just wonderful.  But lordy, lordy, this interpretation sure does make some mighty strong statements about our society values!

I got a bit of a chill during the movie -  feel a little like I'm trying to come down with something, but I had the flu shot, so I'm thinking I'll be fine. I'll try to get good sleep tonight, and maybe tomorrow I'll be all good.

So here's the short of it, 
Such a wonderful gift from Pat and Steve.  


And here's the long.

This lure came from Dad's fishing stuff that all went to Steve.  The picture was one taken probably that last summer before Dad died.



Thanks Pat and Steve!!

So here's the short of it, 
Ready to go. 

And here's the long.

The candy is made.  The Honey Nut Stollen is made.  Everything is in the bags, and we'll be headed out to Atlanta to spend the day with family tomorrow.  Pat and Steve's kids are on the every other year schedule, and the even years are their years with the Howards, so we'll get to see all of them and the 3 cute little grandkids!   Mom took the shuttle down and has been there since Friday.  When I talk with her she sounds like she's having a great time. Liga and Valdis will be going with us and I'm hoping that they'll be able to get into the every other year commitment as well.  Russ and Greg are already there - they arrived Russ from the south on Saturday, and Greg from Montana late Sunday night.  Shelley and Daniel and Elizabeth will be our absent children.  We'll have them there in spirit though.

In the morning we'll load up the car and head down the road.
But right now, I suspect I'd better go try to get some zzz's.