7 AM. I am informed that it is time to get up and feed breakfast to two hungry pups.

7:30 AM. Drinking my morning tea and making my grocery list.

9:08 AM. Another call from Krystal for brunch.

10:24 AM. Krystal tells me to give her a treat. When I oblige, she projectile spits it back at me. I am out of her favorite treats and she isn’t happy about it.

12:02 PM I head to the grocery store to buy necessary items, mainly the preferred snacks of you know who.

1 PM. ‘Low washer fluid’ lights up my dashboard. Sure enough, it is bone dry.

1:10 PM. Stop at Dollar General and get washer fluid.

1:30 PM. I unload groceries, and give the desired treat to fur balls.

1:35 PM. Lever is located in car to pop hood of car. I begin searching for some way to fully open hood to no avail. I retrieve owners manual.

1:45 PM. I locate my reading glasses and find information on page 462. It says….and I quote….”Pull the hood lock release lever. The hood will pop up slightly. Pull up the hood catch and lift the hood.” That’s it. No ‘here’s where/how’ for hood catch.

1:50 PM. I decide to give it another go. I still can’t make the ‘hood catch’ move up, down, side to side, or forward. Nothing is moving at all! I decide to locate a flashlight to aid me. I see out of the corner of my eye my two young uns deciding that the garage is just as handy as the backyard for peeing.

2 PM. Flashlight isn’t much help, but I try and try again, all the while getting my hands filthy roaming around under the edge of the hood.

2:30 PM. I know that Kenn is working on a big project so I try not to disturb him during the day, but I finally text him to see if he has a clue how to open my hood.

3:32 PM. Kenn calls me and tells me he doesn’t think he’s ever opened my hood, but if I go online, I’ll find a ‘how to’ video. Good idea.

3:42 PM. I google it, and sure enough, there’s a ‘how to open the hood of Lexus 350 RX’. Yes!!! I open the video, and it’s for 2004 – 2009 models. Mine is 2010. Doesn’t look a thing alike at the ‘hood catch’. I go to Lexus site for ‘how to’s’ for 2010 models and there’s everything from turning on the radio to opening the blooming doors and no hood opening help. I admit I’m not very mechanically inclined, but I didn’t think the hardest part of this endeavor would be opening the stupid hood! I’m about to become a cursing woman.

3:50 PM. Krystal informs me that she is hungry again. Not for snacks, for REAL food.

4:02 PM. I watch numerous videos on opening car hoods and decide to try yet again. I noticed some cars latch on the side, not directly in the center, so I feel to the right of the latch, and voila! I push a button like thing and up pops the hood!

4:10 PM. Back to the manual. Page 553. “Low washer fluid indicates that the washer fluid level is low.” Correction procedure? “Add washer fluid.” And just where????!!!!!

4:15 PM. Page 479. A picture! There’s actually a picture of where the fluid goes!
YESSS!!! I FINALLY DID IT!!!!!!!

4:22 PM. Pouring bucket of water and bleach on my garage floor.

6:02 PM. Krystal is in the bedroom yelling at me to come to bed. I put my foot down and wait until 7 PM to turn in.

It’s been two whole years since I made my big life change. What a change it has been! This past year was full of wonderfully enjoyable experiences, devastatingly difficult experiences, and everything in between.

First, my most wonderful event was getting engaged to the most wonderful man in the world, Kenn Long. He is so kind, easy-going, funny, and, while I’m a far cry from perfect, he tells me repeatedly that I am perfect….perfect for him. My main complaint is that, after a year and a half, we have yet to have an argument. While I realize that’s not a bad problem to have, it’s bound to happen, right? I almost feel like manufacturing one to get it over with. I said almost.
Our wedding day is scheduled sometime in 2022. Or thereabouts.

My most difficult experiences were losing two people I love very much, both named Judy. Both were besties at different times of my life, one early on in my New Jersey days and the other while I lived in Georgia and beyond. While they were both loving and caring friends, their personalities couldn’t have been more different. New Jersey Judy was outgoing, quick-witted and very funny. She could make a silent monk laugh. Georgia Judy was introverted, quiet, but with a dry sense of humor. I’ve prayed for God to let the two of them meet……NJ Judy would crack GA Judy up!

My two furry kids, Krystal and Casey, are plugging along. Krystal is now 15 1/2 years old and mostly deaf. She can hear Casey bark, me whistle, and when I talk VERY loudly close to her head. She also reads lips. I mouthed the word ‘no’ to her and she immediately stopped doing something. So I decided to mouth the words ‘go potty’ to her and she immediately headed for the doggy door to do her business. Casey tries to keep her informed of important things, like when someone comes to the door, a dog walks by the house, etc. The vet did determine that she has an undiagnosed mass in her liver and she is showing some signs of dementia. I know her days are numbered and I pray I don’t have to make hard decisions some day.

I think back to February 2, 2013, and remember my feelings of anxiousness, excitement, loneliness. It’s amazing how God worked with my imperfectness and blessed me more than I could imagine!

I’ve had quite an active summer so far. Summer started in May for me. Kenn gave me a wonderful birthday gift…….a Hawaiian cruise. I’ve been to Hawaii a couple of times, but have never cruised there. It’s a beautiful place, but boy howdy, is it far away! We caught a plane in Dayton, Ohio. Two and a half hours later, we changed planes in Dallas. Three and a half hours later, we changed planes in LA. A whopping eight hours later, we landed in Honolulu to begin our cruise. We got to see five different islands, and snorkel in some of the most beautiful areas in the world. We ended our trip with a tour of Pearl Harbor, which was quite a moving experience.

The weekend after Hawaii was Camp Wakonda, a yearly family reunion for Kenn’s family. It’s always held Memorial Day Weekend and was quite fun. There were lots of games, even more food, and some of the guys (mine included) shot off rockets for the family to watch and the kids to chase. During a past camp experience, Kenn managed to launch a rocket and set someone’s tent on fire when it returned to earth. No excitement like that this year, thank the Good Lord!

When we returned to Kenn’s house, I picked up the pups from the kennel. They were in desperate need of grooming, and, although I had never used the grooming services at their Ohio kennel, I decided to give it a go. Welllll……..the groomer obviously had never groomed a Bichon Frise before, because when they came walking out, my jaw hit my chest! There stood my babies with a buzz cut! Every time I looked at Krystal, I thought of a cross between a meerkat and a plucked chicken. At almost 15 years old, she has the stance of a bulldog (Bichons are not supposed to stand that way) and her newly trimmed fur accentuated her bowed legs. She walks a little like Nana walked in her 90’s, with a spread out shuffling gait. The young lady at the kennel said sweetly ‘Are they cut a little too short?’ when she saw my mouth flung open and my saucer eyes. ‘I’ve never seen them like that’ said I. She goes ‘I’ll make a note of that for next time’ to which I just smiled and thought ‘no need Sweetheart…..there won’t be a next time!’ Casey’s hair has started growing back, although I think it will be months before either of them get the rounded Bichon looking head. Krystal’s hair on her back is so thin, I’m concerned she will get a sunburn when she’s outside. I obviously kept them away from mirrors so they wouldn’t get depressed.

My last trip was to Panama City Beach with my mom, sister and her family, and brother and his family. Kris and Lesley, my nephew and his wife, have two sweet little ones, who were the sparkle of our trip. We all stayed in a beautiful house about 50 yards from the beach. The best part was when Barry, my brother, picked up a towel and blew his nose into it before he realized it was a stranger’s towel. He quickly folded it and put it back. Now, I think he should have gone ahead and stolen it, because personally, I would prefer my towel stolen than to dry off in someone’s snot. Just sayin……

OK, I found Krystal just sitting and staring into my shower. No one was in there……she was just staring at that strange looking dog in the glass. Bless her heart.

February 2nd. Groundhog Day, Gary Snyder’s birthday, Jonathan’s ‘new’ birthday, Super Bowl Sunday, and my moving day……one year later.

Wow! What a year it has been! Some things planned, more things unplanned, and most things marvelous and wonderful new beginnings in my life!

I took off from my home of 23 years–dead set on getting a fresh start in life–with a U Haul behind me carrying some possessions and Jonathan at the wheel. Leaving Atlanta behind me and Nashville before me was exciting and scary at the same time. I embraced smaller living, even if my furry kids didn’t take too kindly to their lives being upended. After eight months in my new apartment, we (the fur balls and I) moved into our new home, with no carpet in sight, and two doggy doors. As a side note…..I had to pay to get all of the carpet replaced in the apartment, thanks to you know who. But luckily, they depreciated the cost of the carpet. It hadn’t been replaced in four years, so the cost was minimal. The new house has worked out better than I anticipated. I have no regrets in choosing that house and making it our home.

I love the church I chose to attend. The people are wonderful and I’ve loved getting to know Jeff and Vickie (my best friend Ginny’s brother and sister-in-law) better and better. They have taken me in and treated me as family, and introduced me to people at church. It would have been a much more difficult transition without their love and kindness.

Of course, the biggest wonderful change in my life has been finding the most perfect man in the world for me, Kenn. He and I both have gone through an extremely painful time in our lives. We both feel so blessed to have found each other and now look forward to seeing what our future holds.

All in all, it’s been a great year! Bring on year number two!!!!

I am in Ohio, visiting my boyfriend, Kenn, for the holidays. Well, my mom says I’m too old to call him my boyfriend. But I really can’t come up with a better description of our relationship. ‘Friend’ sounds too casual, ‘special friend’ sounds like he may have learning difficulties. ‘Companion’ seems too caretaker-ish, and ‘partner’ sounds either too business-like or like we are living together, which will not happen until the day we get married, assuming that happens at some point. So, since he introduces me as his girlfriend, I will continue to refer to him as my boyfriend. Sorry Momma. But I digress….

Kenn is in the process of looking for a new car. He currently has two vehicles, and plans to trade or sell both of them and live with one, new car. A couple of days ago, one of his cars was at his office so I drove him to work. I drove his other car so I could run it through a car wash before he got it appraised for trade in. This was the point in time when my perfect storm began.

I rely heavily on the GPS in my car while here. The bad part of doing so is having the sense that someone else is driving. I have to make a concerted effort to pay attention to where I am going. More often than not, I just merrily follow directions, oblivious to my surroundings. As I dropped him off, he asked me to run by the post office. “Get on Route 4, turn left on 63, then right on Main Street. Go past the Family Dollar store and the post office is up on the right.” Uh, sure, right. So the wet car with no GPS and I headed out to locate the post office. In the meantime, I remembered Kenn saying, as he got out of the car, that he left his cell phone at home. I also realized that my Lasix was kicking in. I take Lasix for my heart issues, and, if you aren’t aware of this fact, it is the grand poopah of diuretics. So my first order of business was to find a bathroom. After running into a Kroger, I continued my hunt for a post office. I wondered around a bit and finally located it. I felt so smart! Now finding my way home was another matter. I took off in my perceived correct direction. After driving through an industrial area, I knew I was lost. After driving a bit, a pit stop was in order yet again so I spotted a gas station and ran to the restroom. I decided to ask the person at the cash register to point in the direction of Liberty Township, Kenn’s hometown. You see, I was one or two towns over at this point. Instead of pointing as I requested, he decided to give me directions. Now, I am absolutely terrible with accents. My sons hate watching movies with me when foreign accents are involved because I am constantly saying “what did he say?” and they miss half of the movie. Even British accents throw me at times. (Sorry Lynne!) And I really can’t tell the difference between Aussie and Kiwi accents, either. (Sorry Steve!) Well, this guy was very kind….and of Indian or Pakistani descent. As he spoke, all I heard was “wrgregwwrgkjelfjverlvjb”. I asked him to repeat once, but when I realized I was hopeless, I just smiled, nodded, and thanked him profusely. I did make out the word ‘ox’ something or other and the number four. I wondered around until I saw Oxford Street, turned there, saw Route 4, turned, and there, right in front of me……only about an hour after starting my journey……was Kenn’s office. It is exactly 12 minutes from his home to his office, and I drove around for an hour only to return right back to where I started. I no longer felt so smart.

At that point, I was able to find my way home just in time for another bathroom run. When Kenn got home, I told him about my dilemma. He felt bad that he hadn’t given me further directions to get home. I told him that I wished I could have called him. His response? “Belinda, you know you have a GPS on your phone, too, right?” Duh.