With all the excitement from my book coming out, I should be dancing little jigs and feeling content, right? Don't get me wrong, I'm ultra grateful for all the positive feedback from my kind readers, and I do feel a sense of accomplishment, but my brain chemistry has two settings: 1) totally elated - "manicky,"…Read more “Pins and needles” and yarn and felt. My favorite anti-anxiety “meds.”
animals
Processing the week’s events
So much has happened in the past week. It was very exciting last Sunday when my book became available. Thank you to all my friends and family members for placing your orders! And thank you to all my new online friends, who, without even knowing me, bought the book and expressed their congratulations. How cool…Read more Processing the week’s events
Gratitude
The first thing I do in the morning is feed my animals. This requires more time than you might think because my turtle, Ruby the Red-Eared Slider, has to be spoon fed. In 2002 I found her trying to cross a busy street. Before she got halfway across, she got run over by a car. Her…Read more Gratitude
Turtle Time
Nine years ago I adopted three Eastern Box Turtles from a friend at the zoo. She had hatched them for her children, but some of her other turtles started bullying, attacking them, causing shell damage, and she thought it would be best to find them a new home. When she asked if I wanted to adopt them, the…Read more Turtle Time
Volunteer Work: the Best Medicine
When my illness forced me to stop working the first time, in 1999, I felt lost and useless. Not having somewhere to go every day was really depressing. I had to find something to distract me from self-pity, but my weak body and fragile mind limited my choices. I explored volunteer options and discovered a class offered by…Read more Volunteer Work: the Best Medicine
Dixie Dog
Dixie Dog Oh, I wish I was in the land of cotton, Old times there are not forgotten. Look away, look away, look away Dixie Dog! I wish I was with Dixie, Hooray! Hooray! With Dixie Dog I'll take my stand, to live and die with Dixie. Away, away, away back home with Dixie!…Read more Dixie Dog
Farewell to an Erratic Rodent
Every morning for the past three weeks I've woken up to find Steve's handiwork. Steve is a Norway rat(Rattus norvegicus), who got our attention a few weeks ago when he chewed through the rubber weather strip that lined the bottom of our front door. My husband and I thought he’d gotten in my accident and had chewed his way back out. We…Read more Farewell to an Erratic Rodent
An Unwelcome Visitor
My eyes are always scanning the floors of our little home, mostly because we have three dogs who make all kinds of messes. A couple of days ago, in the early morning light, I noticed a spot near the front door that looked like a puddle of something. When I looked closer, I found it was…Read more An Unwelcome Visitor
Dixie Dog
Hey everybody! Henry here. Here’s something Martha wrote about my sister Dixie, who is very sick. Please keep in mind that I’m keeping an eye on both of them. Dixie In December of 2005, I was introduced to three-month old puppy named Dixie. A friend who was working at a veterinary hospital witnessed…Read more Dixie Dog
Hope is the thing with feathers…
In my healthier days, when I was happily working at the zoo, I wrote a weekly newsletter for the docents and volunteers. My service dog Henry was always eager to contribute bits of wisdom to my weekly tome, so when he heard I was writing a blog, he asked if he could add a few words. Of course, I said yes. So today…Read more Hope is the thing with feathers…
Dogged Hope 