Why Me? Topics that Shock & Dismay Riley

Riley may have looked like this a few years ago but the expression now is the same, only more adult, when caught doing something naughty.  "This hole?"  You think I dug "this hole"?   In order to stay cool, Riley has been digging dirt holes in shady areas next to trees and shrubs.  Close to the house so he can monitor my activities.  The holes themselves don't bother me, but the dirt he tracks into the house does.  I like smooth, clean floors in the summer.  Barefoot floors.  I have "dog dirt" floors. Ugh!

I found the stinky thing in the fridge.  Who knew beans could develop such a smell all on their own in a closed container?  No wonder they give us gas.

I also went to Target, yet again, to find undergarments that fit.  I even used a measuring tape to assure a good fit.  A 38D is wasted on a 64 year old woman.  At 20 I was a 34B wearing push ups.  Riley's facial expression was the above when I discussed this with him this morning.  OMG why didn't she take me to Doggie Day Care today!!!

Riley is also distressed by the red tape tied around 13 trees in the backyard.  I am waiting for a return call from Mr. Driscoll the Tree Man.  These trees convey squirrels into the yard where Riley is under the impression he will someday catch one in his teeth and shake it to death.  Riley sits and watches the tape flutter in the breeze and I can almost see him shutter.

Today is day 14 of Induction, done by the rules.  I am in a vague ketosis state (burning fat).  My body HAS changed.  You never can see this yourself.  Other people notice before I do.  But yesterday I went back to doing Pilates and let me just say, WOW, what a difference.  Less of me everywhere and the exercises felt good, not like I was struggling to lift heavy folds of fat.

 G is "Shocked and Amazed" to see me eating MEAT.  Yesterday we grilled burgers (our favorite summertime meal and I usually have a veggie burger) and I had two well done beef burgers with bacon, cheese, mayo, pickles, tomato and lettuce.  No bun, no ketchup and no onions. And it was DELICIOUS.  Yum!!!  Any vague cravings I was having have now gone away completely since I started putting Splenda (1/3 of a packet is plenty sweet for me) and cream in my coffee.  I do dream of eating bread, but that isn't too often, because I fall right to sleep now.  Not much time for dreaming. I thought I would have more of a problem giving up pasta.

I planted three more perennials into the bed by the stoop ( where we sit most evenings after work) so I want us to have lovely things to look at.  I added a hollyhock, a salvia, and a mallow.  Purple, dark blue, and purple /white stripe. The perennials I had planted in the stoop containers last summer have come back (I transplanted them into the ground in October- waste not) so I have scabiosa, gaura and penstemon returning.  Blue, pink and red.  Patty gave me a veronica or hyssop.  A lovely blue.  And I bought a strawberry jar and planted wild strawberries in it for G.  We have them growing all over in the back peony bed.  Tiny, tiny berries.  Very sweet.  Nothing shocking in this paragraph.

G finished replacing the woven plastic webbing on our two aluminum lawn chairs yesterday.  Used up every last bit of the webbing he had found at yard sales when we lived in Chicago.  Now we have to look for more.  G usually buys partially used bags.  If you see any--think of us.  I'll pay postage and everything.  We don't care what color the webbing is.  Just needs to be 2 and a quarter inches wide.  The more colors on the chair, the merrier.

Tree Man just called.  He'll be here at three.  Riley won't eat his breakfast and wants a walk so I think we'll get that out of the way.  I want to work in the garden in the afternoon when it's cooler and transplant my tomatoes and peppers into the earth and set in some seeds for zucchini, yellow squash and cukes.  A busy, dirty day.  I love having a day to myself to work in the garden.