12 Oakdale

 

It wasn’t a white Christmas like in most of the rest of the country, but it was dang cold. Three nights in the 30s this weekend. Something seemed odd when I brought in my orchids, then I realized there were no lizards jumping around inside like always happened in South Florida. I’m still not quite used to living here. Per tradition, we started the day with oyster stew. Annie and Grace each got a tablespoon of broth, which they lapped right up, or would that be right down? Afterwards, both took long baths, then withdrew to their respective sleeping areas. Neither are interested in going to their kitty litter boxes on the porch. Several times we pitched them out our bedroom door, and each time, they raced over to their cat door and come right back in. One time, Annie stopped for a peek into the little cave I made William by hanging a towel to cover the doorway of his shelter. She’s too big to get all the way in, so she hustled on. I am pleased that the heating pad in the roof of his area...

Spaulding and Molly have come to Orlando, combining a work trip for him with a visit with us. They are staying in Melbourne, but Sunday night we got together for dinner after walking to the end of our block to watch the Windermere golf cart Christmas parade. Grant served his vegetarian bean and corn chili with my fougasse herb bread and green salad. I made a chocolate pound cake and bought Santa’s White Christmas ice cream at Publix. I resisted serving the SWC coffee I have.  Patten and Ryann brought their dogs, which sent both our cats to ground: Annie into her preferred closet,  Gracie under the down comforter on our bed. For a few minutes, Mimi wandered around, looking for, but not finding them. Since pit Bobby would eat them without out pause, we closed the bedroom doors. Bobby is a sweet dog, but genes are genes. Of course, one of the boys had to rearrange my “Merry Christmas “ blocks.  I am so delighted that my children enjoy each other’s company and our’s. If I cou...

We are on a Christmas roll. I wrote our annual newsletter and had it printed by the end of November, so I was able to use a coupon for cheap color printing. Our Christmas cards are several designs of Santa with flamingos from a small American company. Grant signed cards and stuck on the labels I’d printed. Cards were in the mail December 1st.  We have lights out front and in the lanai; fairy lights shine in the trees. I set up decorations along the buffet and hung our stockings on the bookcase. The little battery operated lights now come with timers: 6 hours on,18 off. What a great invention. No tree, but I ordered a made-in-Maine balsam wreath that I hung inside and which makes the house smell like a forest in the morning and evenings. I am really enjoying that mixed with the gingerbread house’s aroma. This morning, I baked Santa Lucia buns, so the house smells delicious. Grant’s kimchi sandwiches sometimes overwhelm the holiday scents, but the weather is still warm enough that I ...

I keep claiming I want to move stuff out. This morning, when I started putting out our Christmas decorations, I’ve had a chance to see if that’s true. I guess a box got set down too hard, because the bottom of my “Wee fish ewe a mare egret moose…”  mug, the edge of a crystal snowball candle holder, and the base of my ceramic Christmas tree were broken. The mug is gone, the candle holder is good enough to use, but what to do about my tree?  Steve and I made it in 1970 or there about for my father. It has the little plastic ornaments that are lit up from a large bulb in the base. Stephanie inherited the one we made for his mother. We sold others for a little income. Now, what to do? I already had one, well, I was going to say, disaster this morning, but does buttercream icing that failed, really count as a disaster? Not when I think about the Ukrainians suffering this winter. I’ll change it to disappointment that can be remedied. Grant has gone to the store for more butter. I ha...

I got up at 6:00, later than normal, since I’d stayed up to midnight watching the Florida vs FSU football game, where the teams traded scores back and forth, until the last seconds when UF couldn’t make their  touchdown to tie the game into overtime. Final score: FSU 45, UF 38.  Following my routine, I went pee, then used my headlamp on red to check the scale. 163 lbs, meh. Walking back to bed in the dark, I stepped on something cold and wet. I had done this several months ago, when Gracie had encouraged a Cuban tree frog into the bedroom. *  Both times, it was right under my arch, so no damage other than to my heart. I turned on my lamp, again to red, and tried to locate the dang thing. Gracie helped by playing with the light like laser tag. Not finding it, I turned the light to white, and there it lay, not moving. Because it was a piece of chicken skin. I threw it in the toilet. When he got up, Grant admitted he’d given the cats a treat, but he swore he put it in their...

As Stephanie quoted from the internet, I would like to cancel my subscription to the hurricane of the month club. This time is was Tropical Storm Nicole, which came ashore at Daytona Beach, headed across the state, and dumped 6” of rain at our house. The yard is all soggy again. We mostly just lost more palm fronds. The wild lime and yaupon holly which we’d staked up after Hurricane Ian are now leaning the other direction. I told them they are on their own now. Our biggest mess is the arch on the north side which collapsed. I had already decided to remove it when I trimmed back the skyblue clustervine ( Jacquemontia pentanthos)  after it finished bloom this fall. We’re just going to stand it up as best we can for the nonce While  resetting the trellis, I realized with our arch removed and my neighbor's yellow tababua gone (a loss to the previous storm), we could consider putting in a tree on the northwest corner of the yard. Perhaps even a good sized oak. It’s time to have our...