Happy Blog Anniversary to ME .....

Yep, it's been a year since I started this blog.

I began this journey just for something fun to do. I had no ideas of journaling my whole life, or meeting cool people, or getting involved in it so much.

That was a year ago. Thanks to this blog, I have learned tons about birds, plants, other's lives, got to meet Bill and Julie (and the kids and Chet!), and have found a community of like-minded souls. Thanks to this blog, I found Laura, my first non-family/friend commentor, a charter member of this blog.

Thanks to this blog, I found Birdchick, who helped me find RAPTOR, Inc. Thanks to this blog, Geoff has a blog. Thanks to this blog, Jim also has a blog.

Oh. Wait a minute.

:-)

Let's go to current events: This sign is posted next to a new church an exit or so down the interstate. This church used to be a movie theater.

Church folks can be clever, sometimes.

Isabelle FINALLY got her tadpoles. We ordered them months ago, but there are certain weather requirements that have to be met before the company will ship the little guys. The summer was just too hot for them to have survived, so we got them now.

This is one of the tadpoles. (We ordered two)

Isabelle has named them Tigger and Miss Frog.

They will grow up to be Leopard frogs.

Now, to celebrate the first anniversary of Susan Gets Native, I have news.

I have heard rumors that Cinnamon the Disapproving Rabbit, and Chet Baker, Wonderdog of Whipple, have been seen together in compromising situations. I didn't want to believe the rumors, because some folks would be uncomfortable with a mixed relationship, even in this day and age.

But then, I found the proof that sealed it.

They had a love-child.

It's that time of year again...

...to take the kids out to find the perfect Halloween costume.

We went to two stores this morning, but all we found were expensive, yet crappy, costumes. Isabelle wants to be Ariel from The Little Mermaid, and Lorelei wants to be either Tinkerbell or a cat.

Lorelei really likes hats...

All hail King Lorelei!
"Yo, G! Gonna pimp my ride?"

Oh, what a disturbing store. This refrigerator was stocked with body parts. Like fresh Leg, heart, hands. But the "food" labels were funny. The leg was labeled "Cannibal Meat Market...naturally flavored leg". Eeewww.

How's this for an ego boost? Lorelei threw her arms around this skeleton bride and said "Mommy!". Oh, dear.
And since this is a birding blog, I thought I would add a photo of some birds feeding.

Like vultures feeding on a freshly dead man.

Aren't you glad you stopped by?

Because sometimes you just need a giant fez

Ever notice that you rarely see a pigeon by itself? Pigeons know that staying with their peeps is a good idea.

That's how I feel about all of you who read this blog on a regular basis.

You're my peeps.

Thanks for all the nice comments about Dad.

At first glance, this tree seems to be on fire.

The Fall peak seems to be happening right now.

Wow.

I have wanted crows to come to our yard for ever...

And they have finally shown up, but they don't come too close.

I guess I should figure out what they would like to eat.

We had two golden-crowned kinglets in the crabapple tree this morning.

Take my word for it when I say that the bird in this photo is one of the kinglets.

Not the shot I really wanted to get, but hey...I was driving.

Down the street from RAPTOR is this old Shriner's float.

Because sometimes you just need a giant fez.

Glenn Joseph Kailholz July 11, 1938-October 19, 2004

Okay, I'm ready.

Warning: I'm on some serious cold medicine...this may or may not make sense)

Dad was born on July 11, 1938 to my grandparents Oscar and Ruth Kailholz. He was the middle child in a family of five kids.
They lived on a working farm in Western Hills, a suburb of Cincinnati. Nowadays, it's all shopping plazas and pizza joints and medical buildings, but in 1938, it was small and intimate and pretty rural.
The farm had pigs, cows, my grandfather's homing pigeons and crops like corn and veggies.
My dad had chores to do before school every day. He only wore shoes during the school year, and would be barefoot all summer (best to save money for shoes during school time).
What they had, they worked for. What they didn't have, they did without.
Dad went to West High, but didn't graduate. He got a GED at night school, before joining the Army. He was stationed in Korea right after the Korean War, and just before the Vietnam War. He had a photo album of photos he took and developed while stationed there (he wanted to be a photographer). He made the mistake of telling my brother and me that to get out of unpleasant duty, he would go get a haircut for a quarter. (We used that against him more than once!)

He met Mom (Alice Eileen Vieth) around 1964, but they didn't get married until 1969, 6 months before my brother Steve was born. Ahem.

They lived in Western Hills until Steve was one, then moved to Bright, Indiana. They welcomed me into the family in 1973.

Dad worked his way up at an industrial heating/cooling company until he eventually owned it with a partner. His work ethic: Get it done right. Work hard.

My Dad vowed, after my Mom and he got married, that he would never dance again. I got him to break that promise twice. Once, at the wedding of a friend, while I was still small enough to stand on his shoes, and again at my wedding. We danced to a song called "My Daughter's a Bride".
He was the kind of father who could fix anything and he passed down to me mechanical know-how and the genes to let my brain understand machines, engines. He once saved a family of mourning doves who had been blown out of a tree and made them a new nest from a milk jug. He said that he didn't like cats, but we would catch him talking to and playing with my cats early in the morning when he thought we were all still asleep.

In September 2004, he was diagnosed with leukemia. It was discovered after his blood sugar got out of control (he was a Type II diabetic).
He began chemo in early October.
A month later, he was gone.

Turns out that he had had a mild heart attack in the remote past, which was found as he was getting worked up for the chemo. As far as we can gather, he chose not to deal with any heart issues before starting the chemo, and the doctor respected his wishes, but thought that Dad would make it through the chemo okay.
The night he died, Mom took him to the ER after he started a high fever and didn't feel right. The hospital told Mom to go home and come back in the morning. Just as she was drifting off to sleep, they called and told her to come back immediately.
He was in cardiac trouble when she got there with my brother, and she called me and told me to come right away. This was at 2:20 am. I was out of the house in 3 minutes. Dad died while I was driving to the hospital. At 2:25 am.

I went in to say goodbye, kissed him on the forehead.

I've gone through all the stages of grief, like denial, anger, sorrow...but I am still pissed.
He was 66 years old. Not nearly enough time for us, for him.

It was supposed to be a day of reflection

Today is the second anniversary of my Dad's passing. I was planning on putting together a post reflecting on all that I feel about Dad, how much I miss him.

But instead of a quiet day deep in thought, I spent the day in my car.

(FYI: My car is not working, again, so we have one car.)

6:30 am: Alarm goes off.

6:59: I realize that I turned off said alarm and am now oversleeping.

7:00 to 7:05: Took fastest shower ever.

7:45-8:00: In car, driving Isabelle to dentist appointment.

9:00-9:15: Driving from dentist to home, to pick up Lorelei.

9:15-9:20: Driving Isabelle and Lorelei to school.

9:25-9:45: Getting shampoo, conditioner and cat food at the store.

10:00-11:00: Only time all day to sit and do nothing.

11:00-11:30: Driving to RAPTOR to pick up birds for afternoon program.

11:30-12:30: Chasing, packing up and stuffing car with birds. (And the car seats are still in there...again, only one car, and that's the small one.)

12:30-1:00: Driving from RAPTOR to preschool.

1:05: Drop off girls at home, grab RAPTOR book, etc.

2:00-3:00: Educational program.

3:10-3:40: Driving back to RAPTOR with girls and birds filling the car.

3:40-4:30: Putting birds back in mews, and keeping track of girls at the same time.

4:30-5:30: Driving back home with girls, no birds, trying to get there in time for Geoff to take girls to the Y for swimming class, through rush hour traffic.

And finally...

Home. Alone.

I cleaned the living room, which totally needed it. And then I laid down on the couch with Nellie and Boomer, and fell asleep until Geoff and the girls got home at 8:00 pm.

Whew.

Isabelle's dentist has "banana chairs".
Isabelle may very well be the best dental patient ever. She jumps up and down when I tell her it's time to go back to the dentist.
Above each banana chair, the lights are covered with a picture of a blue sky and clouds. And they have a million flavors of toothpaste, fluoride, etc. Very cool. I wish I could go there for my teeth.

I have been trying to get a picture of this sign for weeks. This is down the road from RAPTOR, a pet store called "The Animal House". They are advertising Wolf Hybrid pups.

Um, hello?

Now, I have met dog/wolf hybrids, and while they are beautiful, I wouldn't trust one with my worst enemy, much less my kids. Kathi, want to chime in on this? What's your professional opinion?

I found a neat photo of my Dad today, between all the chaos. This was taken in 1939, when he was about 9 months old. What a life he had...and how short it was.

When I am more mentally ready to post about him, I will.

Lorelei and I ended up on a road today that I didn't know the end result of.

Turned out to be Mariemont...

A very pretty, affluent community on the eastern side of Cincinnati.

I remembered that Dave from Alaska had worked there back in the day, so I took some photos.

I looked for stuff that had the look of being there for at least 35 years...

Dave, recognize any of this stuff?

Fountain across from the Mariemont Inn.

Mariemont Elementary

The Mariemont Inn

The Mariemont Strand. What is this, a place to get stranded?

A dumb ass guy on a motorcycle, with no helmet and wearing freakin' sandals. Now, I have been on enough motorcycles to know why you need to wear boots or at least SOCKS. Those exhaust pipes are HOT!

I need to write a letter...if you want to own and operate a street bike, you should have to be able to pass an IQ test. Ever notice how many bike riders (not bikers, that is a different breed altogether) are complete morons? Passing in between lanes going about 120 mph? The guys I see with the leather, the boots, the helmets...now THEY deserve to ride a motorcycle.

Okay, rant over.

After the RAPTOR meeting tonight, I was yet again serenaded by Junior. His hoot is so beautifully deep, and his white throat patch flutters when he hoots. What a cute bird. At least I know he isn't going to come too close to me in the dark...unless I happen to be holding a big, juicy rat.

Invasion of the Mind Snatchers (otherwise known as blogging)

Good grief! I haven't posted photos of Boomer in days!

Sorry...

One of the dogs' favorite pastimes...chewing each other's faces.

Sweetness in profile

Boomer likes Charley Harper, too!

For those who don't know who he is:

An artist who calls his work "minimal realism".

And if anyone is stuck on a Christmas gift pour moi, I give you two words: Charley Harper.

Blogging has done something to me. I am taking pictures of things that just really don't need to be photographed.

But this is really cool.

I have a confession. I have an addiction to car washes.

And a new one opened near us, and it's amazing what it can do for my car.

I am really out of control. I am taking pictures of soap.

But it's it pretty?

This is the coolest car wash ever. This grid moves forward and back, scrubs your wheels, dries the car with huge blow dryers, and it's all lit up like a video game.

I felt like an extra in the movie Tron.