FRIDAY's FAVE FIVE

I rake my brain to remember what I have done (or rather not done) this week. I had decided to stay home and rest, to finally get fit again. It's been over a month now that I can't get rid of this bronchitis and I feel so terribly weak. 

So I sat in front of the TV or computer all day long, sometimes with the phone to my ear. Once I even went shopping and came back exhausted. But it's slowly getting better, I'm not breathless so quickly anymore, but the laundry has to wait a little more to be washed. 

View from my working place

On Wednesday, the only day it had snowed in the whole country, the black cat from the first floor had disappeared, and owner two girls were very worried. I took my binoculars went on the terrace and looked down on the snow covered lawn, but no black spot in sight. I took the opportunity and looked a bit into the windows around me, but most of them had their curtains closed. I called the girls and told them that it was now raining cats an dogs and that their cat would certainly hurry home not to get too wet. And I was right, 5 minutes later they called me that a black sponge had run into the living room ! They were so happy. 

On Thursday I had to take little Rosie to the pedicure, fortunately not to the manicure too ! For the first time since I live here, she must have felt something, because when I wanted to put her in the carrier, she disappeared under the armchair. Finally I got her out not very gently, pulling at one paw, but I was so out of breath, that there was no other mean. She sang like Whitney Houston the whole way long, and it took not even 10 min to cut her claws ! Then we went back, and there she didn't sing at all. She probably knew that we were on the way back. As soon as I arrived on my floor I let her out and she ran immediately to the right door and waited until I had opened the door. She would never go elsewhere ! Door open or not. I fell again in my sofa and realized that I was still not in my normal state which made me a little depressed. 

Home again, she in full shape, I half dead ! 

My week ended very nicely, Dominique came again for the weekend and we went to the cinema together. The film was very nice and at least played for 6 weeks, it was the last film of Tom Hanks "A man called Otto" which had been "translated" into French "The worst neighbor in the world" which I think is a better title then the English one.

 We both liked the movie very much, it was sad and full of humor at the same time; We laughed a lot !

After the cinema we wanted to go for supper in a nearby restaurant, but the water came down in buckets from heaven and the wind blow us away. So we returned home and had one of my frozen food, pasta with seafood and vegetables in a lemon sauce. Was very good. 

more participants at Susanne at Living to tell the Story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

HODGEPODGE MARCH 8

1. We're in to a season students call 'spring break'. Did you/your family travel over spring breaks when you were growing up? Tell us something about a 'spring break' you remember (from childhood or adulthood, either one). 

We had Carnival holidays, one week. Nobody in Germany went on holidays when I went to school. They all were too busy to build up the country again, there was no money to go on holidays and not many cars. I went to my grandma which was very nice and I have a lot of good memories, because she lived on the countryside and I lived in a city. 

These were the cars I remember to have seen on the streets !

Opel

 I think this "car" was called "Isetta"

   qqqqqqqand Fiats 500 or 600 were very popular. Was also my first car.

2. Last thing you broke? Was it a big deal?  

A "disaster" ! I dropped my ceramic cat sugar bowl and broke its head! So the cat's body without  head ended up in the trash together with the broken head of course. 

  

3. March 7th is National Cereal Day...are you a fan? What's your favorite? If not cereal what's your favorite breakfast? Your typical breakfast? 

Since I lived not with my parents anymore,  I never ate breakfast, I just wasn't hungry. But when Rick became more and more ill, the doctor told me that I should at least eat something sweet. I tried eating a bowl of muesli with fruits, grapes, blueberries or tangerines and got used to it. Now I eat it each morning together with a strong cup of coffee. 

4. Break ground, break of dawn, break down, break the bank, break one's stride, break the ice, break a law, break a habit, break bread...choose one of the idioms listed and tell us how it applies to your life currently. 

I think in my situation "break of dawn" is the most appropriate. I have to start a new life, standing on one leg and not on two anymore, as now I have this horrible title "Widow".

5. Where do you go to connect with friends and family? What do you like to do most when you're home alone? 

I don't have to go to a special place to connect with friends, I am not shy and people when they see me start to chat. Very interesting, sitting on a bench in a park or in front of the sea and listen to the life stories of people I had never seen before. I don't know where to connect with family, because we are already connected (or not) 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

All my hopes of warm and sunny weather, and leaves coming out disappeared when I opened the curtains this morning ! 

On the other hand it's good for me, because I have to stay home and heal completely this long lasting bronchitis (nearly 2 months, with up and downs) With the new medication I feel much better !

 

 

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY - ARTHUR, RICK'S CAT

Waiting to tease dogs !

 Sharing breakfast (Fortunately Daddy didn't see it)

Making bed, lifting Arthur from one side to the other (he kept sleeping)

 

Arthur's umbrella

He loved sitting in the car and driving around 

*******

Yesterday,  3 years ago, Rick's beloved cat, settled down for a nap on the doormat in the kitchen and fell asleep forever. When I called the vet, she only could state that he died in his sleep after nearly 20 years of a very adventurous life ! He was such a special cat that it is impossible to forget him, you could rather write a book about his adventures.

Rick's childhood dream was owning a white cat. So getting his dream come true, we went to an animal rescue center and while asking for white cats, somebody showed up with a carton and sitting in there was a completely white kitten, little Arthur. And so Arthur took possession of our house !

We quickly noticed that Arthur was a very intelligent, funny, but also a little clumsy cat (he knocked over all kind of things. . He also had nerves of steel. When he slept on a bed and I wanted to change the sheets, I had to lift him up, put him at the end of the bed, stretched the sheet and put him back. When he slept on a door mat everybody had  to climb over him. He wouldn't move. 

When he slept on a table and you want to dress the table. He pretends to sleep so deeply that even if you push or want to chase him from the table he stays put, impossible to move him. Therefore you have to wait or put the plates and cutlery around him, which doesn't disturb him at all. Of course you shouldn't tell your guests that Arthur squatted the table while you were dressing it. 

He also was not afraid of dogs at all ! He just sat on the little wall besides our house and waited until a dog owner came with his dog. Then he would start to groom himself from top to bottom, while watching the jumping and barking dog who got crazy and his owner had all difficulties of the world to pull his dog away and calm him down. Arthur has his most innocent face while looking after the excited dog and the owner who "surfed" behind.

He was well known in the whole neighborhood and probably knew all beds in the houses too. Once a lady asked me if I was the "mum" of the white cat and I said yes ! Awww ! she said he is so cute and friendly he sleeps often in my bed so that I don't have to make it ! 

Unfortunately he also climbed in all cars with open doors, because he liked driving in a car. We always had to tell the people to check their cars if Arthur was not sleeping on the back seats !

When it rained he took the neighbor's dog a Bernese mountain dog as umbrella, and walked under his belly not to get wet. 

As I said, Arthur was very special he could have performed in a circus !

 

 

more participants here,  Image-in-ing and Catblogspere Wordless Wednesday,

HAPPY TUESDAY

 

A very talented elephant
 

HELP ...... a cat

What a service !

 

Linking to HAPPY TUESDAY

AWWWW MONDAY - WEEKEND MARCH 4

 

Lot of work in view ! Easter is approaching

 

 

Linking to AWWW MONDAYS

 

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As usual Maria came on Saturday morning to clean the apartment. What a treasure she is, I don't know how I could cope without her feeling so tired and weak from my very long lasting Bronchitis and asthma attacks.

After lunch while watching a crime story I fell asleep and had to hurry to do my shopping, which I had the intention to do on Friday but finally did it on Saturday. I was less exhausted when I came back and hope that in a week I will be able to jump to the ceiling due to the "doping" pills my doctor had prescribed. I had a few phone conversations, and suddenly the day was over !

Sunday morning when I woke up, I found myself in a rather good state and could even do my daily Yoga exercises in snail speed, but still better then nothing !  

I took my Müsli and a cup of coffee into the living room and put it on the little table. Then I sat down, and knocked over my full mug ! There was coffee everywhere a disaster ! On the carpet, on the sofa on the table fortunately the remote controls escaped the coffee rain. When I realized what I had done, I nearly cried, I thought how can I clean up all the coffee with my breathing difficulties. But to my surprise it went quite easy, and I managed to clean the whole  mess. I felt proud that I had been able, but refrained from the idea to tipping over a second cup to see if it was even better the second time ! What a start in the day ! 

My son came back with Toby from Switzerland  to Amsterdam, he had done the whole trip in one shot, a little more than 1000 km ! Toby starts school on Monday, while his Dad takes the plane this afternoon and continues his holidays in Spain with a friend he knew also from school times in Waterloo, and whom I know too. Toby was complaining that he had to go to school and I complained that I can't go out, so we comforted each other.