A Really Special Lunch

Posted on April 8, 2014April 8, 2014 by Dusty Roads

It’s been pretty quiet around here. The cats play and keep me entertained. The workload has picked up as we move into the spring busy season but the vacation planning seems to be complete and I haven’t started prowling the neighborhoods yet.

But I did have a very special lunch on Sunday. March 3o, 2013 was the day that my department at my old employer was dissolved. Go to Malden, MA or take a lay off they said. I took the lay off along with many others. The ones who stayed have the daily pleasure of commuting from south of Boston through the city to Malden in the north. Not a fun commute even on a good day.

The thing about this department is that we were all “long timers”. I was 6 weeks away from 10 years and one of my co-workers had 25 years in. We were a family and now we were being scattered to the winds. I didn’t mind leaving the company. We were overworked and underpaid while they told us how lucky we were to have a job and what a great place to work, the party line, but I knew I would miss my friends.

We agreed to meet after 1 year to see how everyone was doing and so we did. On Sunday we got together at a nice restaurant for brunch and a chance to catch up. Almost everyone made it. One person had moved away , we didn’t have contact information for another and 2 had conflicts but everyone else was there.

It really did feel like family. Everyone looked great. Everyone seems to be working, maybe not in their favorite job but at least they have landed on their feet. It was a really fun afternoon. There’s talk of doing it again next year. I hope we do. It was really special.

Cat Prodigy

Posted on April 7, 2014April 7, 2014 by Dusty Roads

I live with a cat prodigy. It’s not easy. In the beginning it meant baby safe locks on all the cabinets unless I wanted to come home to find him sleeping on the dinner plates.

Then he learned to open the tri-fold closet doors. I couldn’t find a lock for those so a stool blocks the doors from opening now.

I come home to the TV flickering away when I know I turned it off before I went out and the ceiling fan…well, lets just say he even knows how to adjust the speed. I watched him with the remote just last night. After he got the fan up to medium he went back , nosed it around and with a very deliberate paw, pressed the button for the lights, switched his tail and walked away.

He’s been typing for years. It’s how he earned the title of “Editor -in- chief”.

Editor in Chief

Today he discovered a new trick. He took a selfie with my cell phone. I watched him do it!

Usually he hates my phone. He’s always trying to chew on it but this time he moved it around with his paw and managed to unlock the screen. Next thing I knew the flash went off. After that he lost interest.

I checked the camera function and there it was… his very own “selfie”.

He’s a scary cat… Sometimes I think he’s smarter than me. What will he figure out next?

The Sounds of Spring time

Posted on April 6, 2014April 6, 2014 by Dusty Roads

Birds tweeting comes to mind…but not in my neighborhood.

Today it was the revving of Harley engines on the side street by my window. At dawn…grrrr

That is my only complaint with motorcycles.. the noise…or maybe it’s not the bikes themselves but the inconsiderate riders who like revving the engines so early. When they actually pulled out the noise level wasn’t bad.

The other sound of spring also started today 🙁 Ach, ach, ach…the lovely sound of a cat barfing a hairball. Yup shedding season is upon us.

Somewhere it all that noise a bird has to be singing , right?

Maui Wowie

Posted on April 5, 2014April 5, 2014 by Dusty Roads

You remember how I said once you book a trip you start to hear about the location all the time? It’s true. Since booking the trip to Tennessee I’ve seen ads for Tennessee Whiskey and an article about the Chattanooga Train Museum.

And Las Vegas made the news. They just opened a huge Ferris Wheel, the World’s tallest! There are 28 glass enclosed gondolas that are fully air conditioned. A full rotation takes 30 minutes.

Now I’m wondering if I should start thinking about Hawaii again. Actually I never stop thinking about Hawaii. I love it there but I have delayed a return trip in hopes of seeing more of the as yet un-visited states. But along with the Tennessee and Las Vegas news I keep finding things about Maui, HI.

Last night Wild Hawaii was on Nat Geo Wild. It was all about the ocean around Maui and a large segment concentrated on the humpback whales that migrate to Hawaii to give birth and mate. The show was filled with shots of whales breaching and fins slapping.

That show was followed by another episode but this time about surfing. After the show covered California surfers it segued into “Jaws” and not the shark. Jaws is what they call the huge waves that roll into Maui, HI. in the winter each year. Championship surfing at it’s best.