FRIDAY's FAVE FIVE

It had become cooler but it was still grey and humid. I slept long this Monday until 9.30 and was surprised that my breakfast stood on the table !

That's heaven when you just get up and can drink a cup of hot coffee ! In the afternoon we gathered in the restaurant for a game, which was very funny Kim our new "entertainer" played a song and we had to find out who sang and the title of the song !  The French songs I knew but not the singers or the titles, but when it came to English songs, I found them.

That it rained outside we didn't even realize !

We got a Circular letter that from 1 pm until 4 pm we would be without electricity.   First I thought I will take my car and make a tour, but then the weather became so sunny and warm that I also went out making a tour in the park.

 

I finally discovered the grotto with the Madonna that Vandals had badly damaged a couple of years ago. One of the residents had told me that people came here to pray. Now it's rather neglected, but our manager had told us that big renovations will take place this summer. 

I continued my way and met another resident who also walked in the park with her daughter and her 4 year old great grandson.

 

Our very nice girl which entertains us oldies also came along and we sat in the sun and posed for the picture

 

Then it became too cold and we went to the library with nice leather chairs and a lot of books, gathered around the table and played different games, and suddenly  the lights went on ! I could finish my post !

 

The sunshine lasted the whole day, only it was a little cool. As I will have my son and grandson coming this weekend, I wanted to buy some Brussels' wafers, because he likes them. Otherwise I didn't have a long shopping list, it will be the first time they both come and there is no bed for them. But I suppose that they will sleep at Dario's friend, which is not far from here. It was a bit cold for me outside, so I remained with the others in our restaurant and chatted together. The daughter of my 99 year old friend who is in her 60th, went in the same school as another resident 95 years old and they compared what had changed and what had remained. Was funny to listen to their stories. 

Tomorrow it will be warmer, maybe spring will move in !

Rosie doesn't care, cold, rain, winter, summer, she doesn't change her life style ....she sleeps in her basket during the day, and chases her fake mice during the night, and I have to sleep with earplugs !

more participants at Susanne at Living to tell the Story.

 

 

 

 

 

 

HODGEPODGE MARCH 7

1. Has March come in like a lion where you live? If not a lion then what animal would you use to describe the weather in your area this first week of March? Does the weather affect your emotions? When did you last feel 'under the weather'? 

Certainly not a lion rather like a goldfish which turns around in its bowl. I live in water !

Of course weather influences my mood. When you have always a grey sky, no sunshine, or at least a bright day, my mood is rather "under water"! But I try to bring some sunshine into my heart, but it is very difficult. I would describe my feelings like a roller coaster, there is no "last time" it goes up and down the whole day !

2. Do you know what your name means? Does the meaning of your name fit with your personality? Do you like your name? If you have children did you consider the meaning of their names before choosing them? 

My real name is Ingrid  and means “the beautiful” and “the beautiful goddess”. Ingrid is a Nordic two-part name that was adopted from Scandinavian into German at the end of the 19th century. The Swedish variant of the name is Inger. I learned something, didn't know that but Google knew ! I have some doubts about being a "beautiful goddess"!

When we choose the name of our son, we payed attention to two things. The first name had to be short and impossible to translate into another language. Therefore we choose Dario, which remains Dario in all languages and is short too, because our name is very long and I thought the poor boy when he has to learn to write his name the first one has to be short !

3. It's National Sauce Month...what's your favorite sauce? Last thing you ate that used a sauce? 

Here in my "castle" we always have a sauce. Mostly French or Italian, our chef is excellent, yesterday we had Piglet confit, leek risotto, sage juice and today cod fillet, Vincent Sauce, which was delicious but I cannot explain what sauce it was. French cuisine claims that there are five foundational mother sauces from which they form all other sauces. Each mother sauce has a  unique liquid, thickening agent and distinct flavorings.

4. Something you've seen, tasted, done lately that you'd describe as 'awesome sauce'? 

There are so many awesome sauces in the French kitchen, it is unbelievable ! I think they had to create the best sauces to hide the bad taste of meat and poultry (sorry not everywhere) but that's what  people say !

5. What kinds of things do you love to collect? 

The people who know me will laugh ! Cats of course. My grandson counted all the cat figurines I had in our house and counted 403 cats in all kind of material,  

This is only a little part ! Of course I couldn't take all cats with me here in my "castle" but I still have a  shelf with probably more than 100 cats, which fits very well in my room and makes it cozy.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Sometimes, when I see my breakfast on the table, I think, one day my holidays are finished and I have to return home and think about shopping, cleaning, filling in and out papers and be alone in my 4 walls. But then when I get up and look out of the window, see the cats waiting for the man who feeds them, and hear the noise of the cleaning machine which cleans the long corridors, the shelf on wheels which the nurse pushes to distribute the medication to those who needs them, and then I feel a relief. I don't have to bother anymore about shopping or cleaning or thinking the only one I have to take care of is little Rosie, she eats like a horse and becomes more and more skinny. But as long as her fur is shining, I am not worried. 

WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

Elton John in Brussels a few years ago, as he is still today, a respected family man in a suit and tie

 

 

What a change ! I had seen him with Rick in the 70th when he always appeared in fanciful clothing and wore huge glasses !

 

 

I remember that he wore a white fancy suit and was terribly impressed when he played piano like this 

 

I took the last two pictures from Internet, as at that time I didn't have a digital camera !

 

more participants here, and Image-in-ing

AWWWW MONDAY - WEEKEND MARCH 2

 

Linking to AWWW MONDAYS

 

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WEEKEND

   

Not to repeat myself on each post I put this self explaining photo on the top of my post ! I only wonder when I have to replace my shoes by flippers.

As I needed again grapes and mandarins I quickly drove to the next supermarket and unfortunately I also bought two bags of prawn crackers, because I ate one whole bag in the evening watching a funny crime story !

After my shopping I went to the restaurant where a group of residents took their coffee with little wafels and cookies.  I am improving in wheelchair pushing because I discovered the brakes. Somebody had pushed a wheelchair in the middle of nowhere and a lady sat in there, not moving at all. She had a pretty face and looked completely normal, but her eyes stared without expression, looking like Rick's eyes in his last week. She didn't speak or move, so I pushed her to the others and they made space so I could put her at the table and then suddenly she said "merci". As she didn't move, I looked for the breaks found them and fixed the wheels. I have to ask what she has. She is always dressed very elegant has shoulder long black hairs, which frames her pretty face. 

On Sunday I was invited by the son of my 100 year old friend, to her birthday, but she did celebrate her 99th  which is not bad at all either ! She and her son had invited me too, and so I made and so I met the rest of the family. They were all very nice. 

Jeannie has a son and a daughter who came with the grand children and "my" dog, only his name wasn't Charlie but Lena and he was a female. She looked so much like him ! Jeannie's grandson is also 2 m long, but weights a few kgs more then Dario my son !

 

 

Jeannie blows out one candle but there were two numbers behind 99 I told her to turn them around, and make 66, which she found very funny !

and here I fell in love with the female edition of my beloved Charlie ! Exactly the same, very intelligent and very well educated. Now do you know a Residence who allows to bring with you such a big dog ?

We spent a real nice afternoon and laughed a lot. Other residents came to congratulate and we chatted also with the visitors. As it was Sunday a lot of families visited their grandma or pa or parents. 

Fortunately the supper was cold so I could eat when I wanted and not at 6 pm, because I was still full of the delicious birthday cake !