Long Suffering Sam Sam

So I am at the Oregon coast. Sammy, however, is home dealing with a mouse inquisition. Poor guy.

Our amazing cat sitter is having a party with him every time she visits. She just texted this to me.

Awww.

An Extra Day Away

Oh poor me, here in Pacific City for our semi annual get away. The owners of the house we stay in replaced the big double paned windows, umm, today. It is fabulous as I took this from inside all warm and eating dinner like. :)

My link is this to this marvelous poem about fire in a new feature where the New York Times pairs a poem with a news article. The poem is by Alberto Ríos.  I do encourage you to take a minute to read it.

Perfection

A couple of days ago running home to my place from a work meeting I saw this leaf perfectly lit on the ground by the outside door. Dashed in, grabbed my camera, took this shot and then promptly forgot about it.

I haven't had time to clear the shots on my camera until tonight.

Such a glorious sunny day here all day. A treat after all that rain and cold and did I say rain???

Mt. Hood is gorgeous in her new layer of snow.

Light, Glorious Light

The worst of the storms have apparently passed for now and we are having this brief interlude of gorgeous fall light.

I teach my noon class in a conference room with floor to ceiling windows and we had a downpour while everyone was attempting Half Lord of the Fishes (a pose chosen because of the water theme here after a record breaking month of rain) and then as my students settled into Savasana the sun broke through and there was light.

It is such a gift to be able to teach and watch folks transform and calm their energies.

A Few Blocks A Few Years

I've been thinking about getting a picture of these autumn crocus for the last few days. They are in an open lot a few blocks away where the uninsured church/used bookstore was that burned down a few years ago.

It was interesting that as I was bent down in a crouch to take these shots people I have never seen before, particularly two older distinct women gravitated towards me from I don't know where. 5 years in the neighborhood and I've never seen either of them before.

The power of spontaneous wildflowers.

Transitions Abound

No really... this is a fall picture. I took this last weekend in the neighborhood. Sort of a call out to you all having late spring now. 

Too short an interview but a definite new book to consider if you gravitate towards cats is Cat Sense. I was happy to hear that de-clawing is now illegal in Europe. He has some very helpful things to say about introducing cats to each other and about how and why they do or don't get along.

I put my beloved younger cat Stella down on Friday. It was very peaceful and I am glad she is not suffering anymore. 

Sammy and I are sad but adjusting to having her gone. It is both disconcerting and a relief not to have to be constantly vigilant about her comfort and her meds which I have been doing for the better part of this year. Hopefully that is the end of cancer diagnosis's in this house for any sort of foreseeable future.

Mighty Fine Blues

Just took this. Nothing makes me more happy than the light around the time of the equinox. The fog cleared this morning about 11am and it has been mild and clear and gorgeous ever since.

Last week I listened to Faithful Place by Tana French in audio format and now after hours of this lower class Irish accent it is stuck in my head. What a brilliant book this is! Just remarkable. I'm curious if you have been to Dublin what you'd think of it. It seems to me based on descriptions I have heard that she has nailed the joys and the brutal cost of growing up there.

French says in one interview I read that the next book in the series, #5 will follow the young Holly five years later. I still have #4 to listen to. Nice to have them both to look forward to.