~~~Watering Hole - July 5 thru July 11, 2010~~~

HarvestMoon · #1 07-05-2010, 12:18 AM

Welcome to a new week in the Watering Hole!

I was so inspired by my short trip to Sedona last week, that I want to paint like never before! Nothing like a chance of scenery for inspiration! I ended up cutting paper and hubby cut a board to fit in my little Guerrilla Thumb box and I took that (picture in Joan's Traveling with WC thread). It would have worked wonderfully had I brought an easel to set it on, or a tripod.

We fired off 4th of July fireworks at our neighbors- and hubby handed me a bundle of 6 sparklers- all lit, so my thumb got kind of burned!

What is it about boys and men in particular and things that light and explode? But the fireworks and especially the company was wonderful! Our dogs were all in the house- they hate fireworks so much!

Lets all try to post one painting this week- even if it is a little bitty one! And

to all who need it - including the kitty cats and other pets!

robertsloan2 · #2 07-05-2010, 02:46 AM

That sounds like so much fun. I could go for things that light and explode, guess I'm just like all the rest of the guys. Dogs don't get into it.

My cat doesn't mind though, he got used to the sounds. We didn't get a lot of loud firecrackers in my neighborhood and nothing was visible from my window, so it was quiet and I wound up with my cat snoozing in my lap. Not a bad way to spend a holiday.

Great idea, everyone try to post at least one painting this week. I've got new watercolors on their way but don't know if they'll arrive this week. I'm still thoroughly enjoying my watercolor pencils though and other watercolors, so I know I'll be posting something again tomorrow. Maybe I'll even do something that gets its own thread.

**Brenda Y** · #3 07-05-2010, 10:26 AM

I hope everyone had a fun, but safe, 4th celebration.
From our driveway we were able to see two different public fireworks displays (that were at a distance, so just saw the bigger/higher ones) and then we had some of the "safe and sane" ones that we lit. There were plenty of illegal bottle rockets launched in our neighborhood and nearby neighborhoods and the "black and white" sherrif units were out in force driving around with only their parking lights on and stopping to issue citations. Our next door neighbors set off an illegal and this black and white comes creeping around the corner and while the deputy was writing up the neighbor another neighbor set off a large bottle rocket so the deputy just sauntered over to his house and got him too! The second neighbor is ALWAYS setting off illegals and the reason they are illegal is because of the fire hazard-- (first citation is $500, second $1000 and third $2000). I bet we got some money in the city coffers last night!!
Austin had a blast with sparklers! Our dog hid under the bed and would not come out, poor thing!

The goal to paint SOMETHING this week is a good one, but this is the start of my baking for conference so I doubt I'll have time. But you never know - I just may fool you (and myself!)
Today is grocery shopping and baking 4 - 3 layer Germ Choc cakes and getting them wrapped and in the freezer.

A friend of mine (former co-worker who has fibro) emailed me some information yesterday about a chiropractor in town who treats fibro. He does a complete medical history and does the treatment. She has it really bad and has been on cymbalta for a couple of years. This lady has tried EVERYTHING! Anyway, she is off all medication except Tramadol, which is only as needed now, and she feels better than she has in 5 years!! One thing that was HUGE in her treatment was they determined that she is allergic to gluten, lactose and soy. She said eliminating them from her diet made a HUGE difference and then the weekly treatments are a big benefit too. The DC is having a free seminar this Thurs night, so I'm going to go. I know I'm going to be tired that night after baking, but I think it's important! I emailed another friend with the info and she's going to go with me.

Faafil · #4 07-05-2010, 11:04 AM

Happy Monday morning all!

Good idea Linda - paint "something"

I need to get back into it; haven't touched a brush in almost 2 weeks! So happy you are now inspired - Sedona & the Grand Canyon especially are definitely inspiration to paint. Too bad your allergies are flaring up again - hopefully DH will want to move once the girls are finished with school. Sedona IS pricey though, but there are plenty of towns nearby that are much less expensive.

Brenda, our poor dog Zippy (RIP) was so terrified of fireworks that we had to sedate her! I found her in the clothes dryer one 4th of July. And she was a big dog - about 65 lbs! Hope the chiro can help with your fibro.

Robert, our cats don't seem to mind the noise either, although we didn't have much around here. They go hide under the beds, but don't totally freak out.

Yesterday morning I went out and pulled some weeds, did a couple loads of laundry, and then came in to watch the Yankees game. DS & GF & kids were at Yankee Stadium yesterday. But, I fell asleep for 3 hours!

Guess I needed the sleep. DH even commented "you never do that". So, needless to say, we didn't go watch fireworks last night.

I do feel a little better this morning, just tired. I really hate being sick. One of the gel nose pads on my glasses fell off, so today I'm wearing an older pair of glasses until I can get them fixed. Kinda weird, because the RX is a tad different. It's always something

(in my best Rosanne Rosannadanna voice).

Think I'll go shower, maybe that will help....waving to Azure, Shirl, Carey, Roger and all to follow! Have a creative day!

HarvestMoon · #5 07-05-2010, 12:05 PM

Good morning Robert! My basset would not even go out last night to pee once all the fireworks stopped!

Brenda- you should go to that chiro guy...that sounds amazing....I sure hope he can sort you out- so many people are allergic to wheat, etc. You do have a baking marathon this week, you are exempt from painting! Our neighbors are going to move to Calif. (the husband is from there) in about a year, and I don't know how their son will survive if he can't shoot off large explosive firercrackers!! This is the first year in ages we could do it, due to the burn hazard, so EVERYONE shot them off...we have no restrictions either! quite loud last night!

Mary Lou- oh, hope you enjoy this baseball season- who is your favorite team? I used to go to the occasional Texas Ranger game when I lived 'up north' in the Dallas area! I think the trip just exhausted you- there is always some stress involved in a trip, and change in time zones, then your cold to top it off, so take care and rest up and take vit. C!!

aszurblue · #6 07-05-2010, 12:37 PM

Good Monday Morning,

I didn't go out to watch fireworks this year. Just so darn hot(106 at my place) yesterday. Thought I'd stay home an watch the Macy's Day Fireworks on TV. I only got to see about two minutes of it before my Direct TV went down... Guess it's out side, the dish needs to be repositioned

Personally I think they are full of beans, cause it had been working just fine right up till then... But guess we will find out on Thursday..Yep, gonna take Directv 4 days to make it to my place.. Man, I didn't know I lived in such a remote area...I was gonna ask if they were coming by stagecoach, but thought it best to keep my smart mouth to myself, less it they decided to make that a two weeks arrival time

Robert could have used a little of your "quiet" at my place. For about 3 hours after dark, you'd thought you were in a war zone... I went out to check on the feral's at one point and the smoke haze was so bad I thought fog had move in

Brenda, know what you mean about the illegal fireworks, we have plenty here in the park. You'd think those numb-nuts would get the fire hazard thing, but Noooo, as long as its not their house burning down, what do they care!...
...Try not to work so hard this week and remember to take some quality down time just for you!

Esther, what a save you made with Scooter

poor baby....I too find my fixed feral's disappear allot after being fixed, especially if its me trapping and taking them to the vets. But if I let someone else take them, they are better at staying around...You know a spray bottle that shoots water(add a little white vinegar) will go along way to stopping dominant food aggression at the "dinner table" with both indoor or out door kitty's

Linda, did you know that FUP can be detected with a blood test. I tell all my adopter's to get a full panel plus a FUP blood analysis when kitten's are 3 to 6 months old. This is a real nasty disease and really hard to detect in small kitten's, and then it may not show up for months

This is why it is so important to know just where the kitten has came from. Allot of non-kill shelters will take kittens from the city shelters that are slated to be put to sleep.....
.....99% of shelters do not run blood tests. They just spay, neuter, de-worm and give them their shots. The reason being that the test cost is anywhere between $100 to $170.(in my area)dollars

... FUP can be quite common when you house a large number of kittens and cats together, all sharing the same litter boxes and food dishes like the city shelters and some of the larger non-kill shelters do; And it only takes one sick cat to give it to hundred's...
...egads..I'm on my soap box again...sorry

Well now that I've bored y'all to death with my cat talk, I'll go and give some thought to the "Paint and Post" thing....Take care all and have a super day... Azure

Faafil · #7 07-05-2010, 12:45 PM

Got out of the shower and it's raining!!

It NEVER rains in July... weird weather we're having... temps have been below normal for quite some time...

I'm a San Diego Padres fan (due to DH being from SD), but thought I'd watch the Yankees yesterday since DS was actually there. I missed almost the entire game tho (3-hour nap).

Today is day 7 of this cold, so I think about 3 more days and it should be done. If not, then I'll go to the dr. I've been taking my Vitamins, and cold tablets.

Have to make a grocery list, our cupboards are bare (well, at least the freezer is)! So will probably hit Costco tomorrow. Yech. Definitely don't need green beans though - DH has planted bush beans everywhere! They are producing much more than he thought - we're giving them away. The tomatoes on the other hand, aren't doing so well this year.

Go figure, after that bumper crop last year.

Off to get breakfast - ttfn

robertsloan2 · #8 07-05-2010, 03:38 PM

Azure, thanks for making me appreciate my quiet neighborhood. I can just imagine how the ferals were taking the noise bombardment. What is FUP and can it be treated once it's diagnosed? It sounds nasty.

Brenda, I've had a lot of luck with chiropractors, but didn't know they could treat fibro. They do great things for my back though. It's congenital, so they never actually cured it, but they can set me right and give me better function for a week or two if I get to go to one. The food intolerances seem to be part of the disease. I can't have milk unless it's cooked or treated. Cheese seems to be fine and so is cooked pudding or milk as an ingredient, but milk or ice cream makes me sick.

I woke up at seven this morning, but that was a mistake. I went to bed again two hours later and woke up again around one or two. Seems like I'm back on my night owl schedule and only sleep well during the day. It's summer so I've still got plenty of hours of daylight left, maybe that's why I'm drifting back to the night owl thing.

Haven't decided what to paint today, did that demo yesterday and have packages coming in two days but they're not here yet. Maybe fool with my watercolor pencils again, that's always fast and powerful.

aszurblue · #9 07-05-2010, 06:45 PM

Robert. I'm so sorry, my dyslexia seams to be real active today... but its FIP, not FUP... Feline Infectious Peritonitis..it is rare fatal viral disease that has no known cure. It has two forms Wet or Dry. It happens mostly in cats up to 2 years old. Older cats don't seam to get it hardly at all... and as I said before, it can from shelters, cattery's, and large rescue originations who house large amounts of kittens and cats together that share a common food or litter box sorce. It could even happen with my feral's(same food dish)

PLEAS NOTE... This dose not mean that a kitten or cat "will" have it if you get a kitty from them!!!! It is rare, but just that the risk is a little higher.

My little Samantha died of the Wet form at 6 months old. I had adopted her from a small rescue at a pet store, yes she had been at the city shelter before them and I wasn't aware of this disease then, and not sure if it would have made a difference had I known...Once she was in my arms, it was instant love, she was mine and I was hers.... its rare, but it dose happen...Azure

HarvestMoon · #10 07-05-2010, 09:19 PM

Shirl- WHERE ARE YOU???

Mary Lou- oh, I love green beans, esp. fresh ones! so very sad about the tomatoes! those are the best thing ever....I snagged some from Pat today! My little plant has one that is getting red, but one branch broke down- I am hoping it can stay alive....I think a certain tabby cat was involved...this one is a 'house pet' I mean 'house plant' since the goats have not gotten into the house- lately! I love TheraFlu for colds and flu!

Robert- I always feel like my watercolor pencils are so slow! Pretty funny....Pat is 1/2 way through her first watercolor pencil painting, and was asking me how much she can sell it for!

It is really nice, but there are so many factors- how it is framed, and esp. if you are 'known' in the art world (ie. winning shows) - not just 'is it a good picture'....sigh.

Azure- oh, I forgot that it was FIP, not FUP....sorry...thanks for correcting that! It was so horrible...I got these 2 kittens to try to perk up the kids and my husband after my husband's parents were killed....instead of helping with the grief, as only kittens can seem to do, it make everything even worse to loose those two (Sonny and Cher).

robertsloan2 · #11 07-05-2010, 09:47 PM

Azure, thank you for telling me about it. That's so sad about little Samantha. I know if you'd known you probably still would have taken her home, it might have helped to know. I'm relieved to know Ari's not at risk, but that's still something terrible. This tells me those shelters need more donations, to be able to afford to screen for it.

Linda, that's sad about your kittens. I can only imagine how hard it was when they went too.

Shirl Parker · #12 07-05-2010, 10:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarvestMoon

Shirl- WHERE ARE YOU???....

Shhh, I'm snoozin'.

**Brenda Y** · #13 07-06-2010, 12:00 AM

Just a quick "pop in." I'm in trouble trouble trouble! I only got 2 German Choc cakes baked today and was so exhausted I had to come home. Of course, I shopped at Sam's and at WalMart first, took all the groceries out to the campus, found a three shelf cart to use to haul all the groceries from my trunk to the 3rd floor cooking lab. Put the freezer and refrig items away and then started on the baking. I left the house at 10:30 and returned home just before 4. I took my afternoon drugs and went to bed for 2 hours! Aside from that being quite a lot to get done, I didn't even think about letting anyone know I'd need the A/C on in the lab!! Egads, it was hot! It was 102 when I left (outside, not inside!). The controls for the A/C are computerized from a main CPU, so I couldn't turn it on myself.
I took Celebrex this morning and still was not feeling so great. I am not planning on baking tomorrow--I need to do some stuff at home, plus have a wedding shower to go to tomorrow night and I haven't bought the gift yet. My neighbor brought over 2 large bags of plums from their tree and I've GOT to get them "put up" somehow some way. I think I'll just freeze them. I don't really have time to can them this week.
My next baking days will be Wed and Thurs. A friend is going to help me on Wed - yea!!! I hope my fibro feels better

Mary Lou,
Glad you are feeling a bit better, maybe tomorrow will be even better! My DS went to a Dodgers game today. We have always been Giants fans and it's taken us 17 years of living in southern CA to TOLERATE the Dodgers

The only Dodger games we've been to is when they are playing the Giants.
You had rain?!! It is the season for the AZ desert monsoons, must've been a little overflow from there.

Linda,
Our town allows "safe and sane" fireworks and the neighboring town does not allow ANY fireworks. We had a Doberman who would get so upset with fireworks that he would vomit. Poor boy! I would lay on the floor with him and hold him and he'd still just shake and pant and then upchuck. The dog we have now just stays under the bed.

Azure,
You don't bore me with your cat talk. Just makes me miss being able to have them. I still miss my big Smokey Bear -- gotta find a pic of him to post!

HarvestMoon · #14 07-06-2010, 07:45 AM

Brenda- oh my gosh....you poor thing! I was worried that you might be taking on way too much! Wish I was close enough to pop over and help you!

Azure- I love your cat stories too- I think most of us are real cat lovers! Keep them coming!

It is my painting day out by the lake....and once again changing up what I take out there, which usually means I forget half of what I need, and take a lot of what I don't! I plan to tackle one of the easier Grand Canyon scenes.

aszurblue · #15 07-06-2010, 12:02 PM

Happy Tuesday Everyone,

Mary Lou, RAIN at your place on the 4th of July!! My, but that must have been nice... I hope your cold is getting better...There is a product I take when I even "think" I'm coming down with one. It's called Emergen-C. Just mix it with a small amount of water... It has 1,000mg of Vitamin C, plus 32 minerals complexes, the B vitamins, zinc and good source of potassium plus other goodies in one little packet... You can take it 2-4 times a day...I started taking it as a energy booster at work about 3 years ago. Comes is lots of yummy flavors too! One little note here...don't take it late in the evening or you'll be up at all hours...Unless you want to be up at one or two in the morning, then thats a good thing

...

Brenda, ya gotta slow down girl!, or get yourself a good helper. At least someone to help with all that shopping, toting and lifting...Good that you'll be taking a small rest today... Not good for your Fibro, all this stress...
...I gave away all of my canning stuff a few years ago, after all my Peach and Cherry trees died from some weird California tree disease

...
...My flair that started a few weeks ago has now move to include just about all of the back part of my left leg from ankle to very top of the thigh joint...This is going to be a long one...sigh...

Robert, YES! donations are GOOD! One thing I tell people who want to help but can't foster. Start a "Goody" box and when you are out shopping just pick up one small thing a trip, a squeaky toy, little mice toys, a cat teaser, small food dishes, small pet bed, small can of kitten milk replacer ... or at the thrift store, baby blankets, small stuffed baby toys..ect... Just one little thing at a time and the next thing you know, you'll have a super goody box for a donation

...

Linda, hope your painting day by the lake is fun, and you remember to take what you'll need. If it were me, I'd probably end up at the lake shore playing in the water, finding cool rocks and chasing fish

Shirl, you need to stop with the napping and snoozing and come out and play with us!!

Roger, Where have you gotten off to this time? You need to come out and play too!

My little Snicker's is still eating and drinking pretty good, but he just doesn't seam as perky today. While the other three are running around bouncing off walls and playing leap-frog, he is just quietly watching, more off to his self..
Not good

Well gotta go for now..Waving at all our MIA's, lurkers and ones yet to come. Have a great day everyone!

... Azure

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