2021

Good Morning ALL! How are you on this Monday, May 10, 2021? Alvin and I are okay. Not the same waking up and feeling of yesterday. Alvin clearly is not feeling well. I am going to make him an appointment with the Vet as soon as they are opened. Hopefully can get him in this morning or at least today. He right ear appears to be bothering him and he has loose poop bordering on diarrhea which he has had for a couple of days now. Oh my poor boy! I wish him good health.

I just had to shut down my phone as it needed to do whatever it is that it does!

Well the morning sky started out overcast as the sun rose but it appears to be clearing up now. A bit of a breeze happening.

I hope that all the women and girls out there had a great Mother’s Day. Alvin and I went for a walk about 11:00 a.m. and on our way past our friend’s house, I noticed that she was in the garden so I called out to her. We stayed and chatted over the fence for several minutes catching up on the latest news in our lives. Sounded like she was having a Mother’s Day weekend. With the rain the weeds were growing like they had been fertilized. She has the most gorgeous daffodils blooming at this time. We continued on our walk and as we were passing Alvin’s best friend Teddy’s house, I heard his Dad calling out to us and inviting us in. After a visit along with tea and treats we were on our way. Unfortunately Alvin had eaten some of the pups food when we first arrived before it could be put up out of reach. They leave their pups food out all the time as Teddy grazes and Kobi, too actually. I hope that does not make things worse for Alvin. At home again, I started preparing different things for supper taking my time. The kids arrived at 4:00 p.m. just as supper was ready to put on the table. We took a few minutes to get settled and dish up. Always a blessing and so nice to see my kids and grand pups. Oh and I took a few minutes to feed Mr. Alvin his supper which was a bit early. We chatted throughout supper catching up on all our news. Even sharing stories of my youth which came up when I was speaking to my daughter about her baby clothes and such. About that I had placed most of those items in black garbage bags inside of rubbermaid containers which I should not have done. I did manage to get most of the chemical smell out of one load washed three times. We discussed about what to do with everything. Clearly as a Mom most things store most memories for me than my daughter. After supper we down to the basement and we looked at a few things which brought up some good memories for her. She remembered that she had been nervous about going to the babysitting course as she didn’t think that she had anything “cool” to wear and then I brought out an outfit that I had put away for some occasion which she loved. Actually that story made my day as I did not remember. I was thinking that perhaps it may be time to start writing down stories of my childhood and over the years for future generations.

Well it is time to get going here and pay some bills. Put on the coffee and set up my workstation once again. I will say that I think that I will pack up my work stuff every end of the work week, made me feel a break between work and home. Plus it looked like my kitchen, my house again and not work. No complaining as I love working from home. Just like to have my space.

My daughter heard that the rain helped with the wildfires and that they are now able to contain. Thank goodness.

May you have a wonderful Monday.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion and patience.

Always, Love Carol & Alvin

It is a NEW YEAR.

Well can you believe it …. Wednesday June 17th, 2020.

I seem to remember last week it was June 1st.

Half way through 2020.

WOW, that is just crazy.

Totally a good reason to ensure that you live your best life every single day.

Every day is counted in the same manner.

24 hours.

60 minutes in an hour.

60 seconds in a minute.

So why does it sometimes feel as though a week or a month or six months can pass in the blink of an eye.

For me, it is because I have so many things that I would like to do and then the time has passed.

But we cannot give up.

Keep dreaming and making those lists.

 

I know that with working from home …. I am challenged with staying away from the job during off work times.

As I am keenly aware of how much work keeps coming in …. it is difficult to leave it alone.

I am stressed and anxious about the never ending “mail”  that keeps arriving in my inboxes.

Daily or at least weekly we receive additional direction and added responsibilities.

I do know that I am not alone.

 

There are so many folks out there working from home.

Depending on what your job is …. during this Pandemic …. you may be swamped.

The neverending INBOX, that dreaded email.

Our life line to the outside world.

 

We also realize that we are blessed and fortunate to have employment during this pandemic.

I am great appreciative to be employed.

Knowing that I can continue to be financially responsible for me and Alvin means the world to me.

However, that does not stop those moments of sheer anxiety of how am I ever going to get this all done.

Then I begin to second guess my skills, intelligence and even my memory.

 

Time affects us all.

Whether too much or not enough.

This pandemic affects us all whether directly or indirectly.

We, you and me are not alone.

 

Just because you are working and do not have the virus.

Does not mean to say that you cannot be anxious and scared and have feelings of loneliness and dread.

So we have to be aware.

Aware of everyone’s feelings and know that is is okay.

Okay to be nervous, anxious and fearful.

 

We will get through this pandemic.

When, I have no idea.

But we will.

The human race will endure.

Things will be different as they are already.

Will we ever go back to the way things were?

No, I do not believe so.

Why would we want to.

We have learned so much in these past few months.

Time to build upon that knowledge moving forward.

 

Well my work desk is calling my name.

It is inches away.

See what I mean.

My coffee is ready for me in a to go mug on my workstation.

 

I hope that you have an awesome day.

It is cloudy and raining here in Edmonton in my neighbourhood.

Wishing you a day and a life filled with kindness and respect.

 

Living this life, my life, every DAY with kindness and respect for all life.

I/We, shall remain,

As Always, Carol & Alvin

 

 

 

It is a NEW YEAR.

Happy Saturday Everyone!

The sun is shining with a high of +6 degrees celsius.

The snow and ice are actually quite quickly disappearing from our landscape.

The once pool or pond of water in my backyard has gone.

There is a smaller bank of snow which I am going to break up and shovel over so that it melts more quickly.

There is only a couple of shovels of snow left on the deck.

I have been trying to keep the snow mould down to a minimum as I shovel and then sweep and pour clean water on.

Once dry sweep again.

So once the temperatures are warm enough with no hint of freezing overnight I will take either a pressure washer or garden hose and clean the deck.

I have a pressure washer but it is currently housed at my daughter’s house.

My neighbour has one so I could always borrow it.

But I will get it all nice and clean before bringing out the deck furniture.

The front yard still has snow but that is melting and where there were three to four banks a week ago there are perhaps one foot with clear spots.

So it is going for sure.

No snow covering the rooftops.

But what I am over the moon happiest about is the temperature for tomorrow +16 degrees celsius.

The forecast is double digits for the next two weeks so the cold temperatures should be behind us.

Then we can all get our yards cleaned up and start spending some time in the backyard and on our decks.

I am hoping that all of my perennials come up okay as I do not think that there will be nurseries opening.

Or perhaps they will, I do not know for sure.

I am grateful to have my geranium.

It is full of blooms and is so huge.

It will be ready to be transplanted.

I think that I will find a huge pot in a few weeks and put it on the deck.

It appears to like the southern exposure.

On those super hot days I can move it into the shade.

 

Yesterday my Director brought me a brand new computer monitor.

We all have new ones at work as we were going to start using two monitors.

Really with our jobs they are a necessity.

Now with the laptop and the monitor it seems like a workstation.

Having a full large screen is wonderful.

The best part was I set it up all by myself.

I am no techie so I was so proud.

I had a little moment ….. just me and Alvin.

He was proud of his Momma, too.

 

Well today.

What is on your list for the weekend.

We slept in a bit ….. after 8:00 a.m.

I had the craziest, most strange dream.

So real.

Then we were up.

Oh, we were up at 5:00 a.m. when Alvin got up to have his breakfast and go outside.

That is another reason to get that back grassy area in top shape so that he can go to the bathroom there.

I keep that clean.

Always picking up the poop.

That is part of my job as a pack leader.

Yes, it is.

 

Anyway back to today and for tomorrow:

Laundry

Clean out closets and put winter things away

Clean off the deck

Break up the remaining snow in backyard so it will melt more easily

Vacuum

Dust and Clean

Bathrooms

Bath Alvin

I usually shower so thought at some point I may have a luxurious bath

Work on the basement ( still putting things in order down there )

Go for walks

Relax and Enjoy this weather.

 

Well that is my plan for the weekend.

I will do what I can.

Likely all of it.

 

I hope that this finds you in good health and safe.

As summer approaches us and we want to go outside and be with others more and more.

Remember you can visit but keep the social distancing rules in place.

There can be outdoor visits in your front yard.

You in the garage and visitors at the entrance way.

Have someone bring their own chair.

You have your chair.

No one has to clean things afterwards.

If we all work together ….

We will get through this.

 

Take care.

Live with Kindness and Respect.

Enjoy your time at home.

Be grateful for what you have ……

Things can change quickly.

 

With Kindness and Respect,

I/We remain,

As Always, Carol & Alvin