The Lost Files

Michael went back to Mexico to help out at the Saltillo plant for this past week. It got me thinking that I never posted some of my pictures from our last month there. The following pictures were taken in July 2009 and offer a glimpse of life in Saltillo and Arteaga. Enjoy.

True Love

"Love must be learned, and learned again and again; there is no end to it. Hate needs no instruction, but waits only to be provoked."
- Katherine Anne Porter

Pictures

I found a bunch of pictures on my camera from our last month in Mexico. Thought I'd share a few.

This post is pictures from our last trip to South Padre Island in Texas. Michael and I drove to Texas, picked up his parents from the airport, then headed to the island for a couple days. After our little vacation, we went back to Saltillo, Mexico to show Chuck and Kathy our "home," let them experience the Mexican culture, and then we packed up all our belongings and headed back to Michigan.

These are not in a very nice order - I am annoyed because the blog is not allowing me to move my pictures around. Anyone know how to do this?

Beautiful sunsets

Love this sign

Michael wanted to catch a seagull. Notice how close he was to the "road" on the beach. He got some confused looks.

The birds are becoming intrigued by the chips scattered on the towel. But why is the towel breathing, they wonder.

Giving up - probably a bit toasty under a towel in temps over 100

Some say I walk on water.

This was an alarming moment for me - thousands of seagulls swarming around and swooping at my head - it made me very nervous

The seagull hang-out. All the cool birds have their own post.

Chuck watching Michael try to kite board - sweet shades

Went to Colorado, Took 3 pictures

Michael and I went to Colorado this past weekend. We left at 3:30 pm on Wednesday, drove through the night and arrived in Fort Collins at 9:30 am Michigan time. After a couple hours rest at Brandon and Kristin's place, we drove another 2.5 hours to Dillon and went skiing at A Basin. We spent Thursday night at a "classy" motel in Silverthorn and skied Keystone on Friday. Friday night we drove back to Fort Collins, had dinner with Brandon and Kristin, and relaxed at their place. Saturday morning we headed back to A Basin with Brandon. After another day of skiing, we enjoyed a free meal at Chick fil a - then Michael and I hit the road - returning home around 2:30 pm on Sunday. It was a quick trip, but we had a good time.

Here are the three pictures I took in Colorado:

Update

I'm sitting in the hospital with my father-in-law, Chuck, who had surgery yesterday. Last year he had surgery to remove cancer from his kidney. The most recent scan showed that the cancer came back. So they decided to remove the whole kidney this time. Everything went well and he is on the road to recovery. We expect him to be in the hospital until Saturday. Thanks for all your prayers.

Good night, Noche

Last night we had to put my cat, Noche, down. He started acting strange on Sunday - meowing and hissing when he tried to go to the bathroom. By Monday night, he just laid in his litter box. I took him to the vet on Tuesday when I got home from work. He couldn't even lift his head - and he never meowed, which is very uncharacteristic of him. He was the most talkative cat I ever met. The vet said there was a blockage and gave me an estimate of $700 to fix it. As much as I loved him, I couldn't spend that much money, especially not knowing if he would survive. He was in bad shape. I just wanted to put him out of his misery. I held him and petted him and said goodbye.

I don't know why I'm taking this so hard. Last night I couldn't stop crying. This morning I burst into tears when I walked past our stairs and he wasn't there to jump out and swat at my leg then run behind the chair, or when he wasn't waiting for me outside the bathroom door after my shower, and he wasn't there to beg for a drink of water from the sink. I even imagined I saw him sitting on his favorite blanket and I swear I heard muffled meows this morning when I was still in bed.

Noche was annoying. He meowed a lot. He was messy. He didn't just cover his poo, he kicked the litter with a flare I have never seen before, scattering it on the floor. He had emotional issues too, probably from being abandoned by his mother at a very early age on the streets of Mexico. He compulsively licked his paws. And I'm pretty sure he is the culprit who gave me ringworm while we were still living in Mexico.

I loved him anyway. I loved the way he followed me all over the house, sometimes so close I would trip over him. I loved the way he couldn't wait to sit on my lap and snuggle as I watched TV. I loved the way he sometimes meowed with a slight gurgle when he really wanted something - maybe trying to sound more pathetic so I would give in. It usually worked.

But what I'll remember most about Noche is the unconditional love he gave me when I needed it most.

So now I'll cry for a little while. Because I miss him. And I love him. Maybe the menopause drugs are making me even more emotional than what is considered normal; but if you have lost a pet, you probably know how I feel. Best of all, you know how it feels to be loved simply because you are you.

Thank you for that gift, buddy.

Am I losing it?

Well, so far no hot flashes. However, I almost had a meltdown at Kohl's last Saturday. I am not a big shopper. I like to go into a store, find what I need, and move on. It was very busy on Saturday because they had some good sales - plus I had coupons for an additional 20% off so I had to get something! But if you know me, you know how well I handle crowded stores. So I was a bit tense to begin with.

After about 1.5 hours, I had my little cart filled with clothes to try on. On my way to the dressing room, I quickly made a stop to look at a vest. I was only away from my cart for 2-3 minutes and when I came back it was gone! I looked everywhere. I KNEW I left it right there by the striped sweaters - but it was no where to be seen. Then I started flipping out - maybe my memory is already fading. Then I started to feel like I was getting a hot flash. It was so hot in that dumb store. Why did that woman just run right into me!? And where was my cart! I'm losing my mind!

After wandering around, looking quite flustered I'm sure, I gave up on my cart. I found most of the items I was missing - my size mysteriously on the top of each pile. I guess those Kohl's workers don't take too kindly to unattended carts. Lesson learned.

On another note, happy 75th birthday Mom! I love you more than words can say.