Friends for Life

I have to make it short again. My supper preparations aren't finished. I went from beginning to make cannelloni to making a vegetarian lasagna. The whole wheat lasagna noodles are cooking now. I ruined one batch of cannelloni filling too. After I had everything in the bowl, I threw in a container of cottage cheese that had gone bad so through out the old mixture and started again, to find I didn't have enough cannelloni shells. Luckily the tomato sauce I made can be used for either.

I had a busy day with car repairs and errands. I brought a sick friend some cheery daffodils. I got the terrible news yesterday, that another friend, my long time, very close friend and room mate from the early seventies has breast cancer. Im in a kind of shock. I talked to her yesterday and again today. She is having surgery on the 7th. My dad talked about this age where we or our friends are having surgeries and illnesses, and we're attending lots of funerals too. No one is immune to the dreadful disease and it seems to be so widespread now.

Today's music is for my old friend Pam, now living in Alberta. We sang this James Taylor song together at a friend's wedding many years ago. Here is the classic You've Got a Friend. Tired Skin by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes kind of fits the mortal situation she is feeling.

Rivers Rising

I pulled an all-niter and went to bed at 7:40 this morning. I wish I could say I was partying or having fun somehow. I was on flood watch or pump call, whatever term you'd use when your basement is flooded and you manually have to turn the pump off and on. Flooding is a pain semi-annually suffered by those who live in hollows. We had a tremendous melt and run off yesterday. There was water across many roads while I was driving around the countryside (that's my absence excuse) and levels very high in waterways. I had noticed how high my own pond was early in the morning.

Anyway, I'm not working in all cylinders. Anyone who knows me understands I like an order to my twenty-four hours. Deviations can be hard on me and one so extreme has fried my brain. I slept from 7:45 till noon and had another nap for an hour, waking at four-thirty. I can't even tell you how awful I felt before that nap. I feel better now.

Ha, I just returned from the main page of this blog to check something and find that I posted a gull on my last post as well. The last shot is a couple years old. Today's was from Friday.

Oh course we need music about rivers or floods and I have lots to choose from. It is a theme in music from the beginning. Love, as a theme in music, comes first and probably water is second. Here's Annie Lennox with Take Me to the River. I also have a treat for live music lovers; a bootleg cut of James Taylor and Bruce Springsteen song Springsteen's, The River. It's not a mastered recording so not as sharp but a nice concert feel. I would gladly have been there.

Hold Yourself

This photo is deceiving for a day like today as I wanted something bright and have only dark photos that portray pure wind. We have had a huge wind storm for the last couple of days and it is still blowing a gale. Though it is sunny, the furnace is running full time to keep us warm. The rest of The Maritimes are above zero but not here. It is only minus four now but was very cold for much of the day.

I'm feeling fine but no one told me of the dangers of laughing or sneezing. Movements of the body have to be calculated. I had to take pain medication after talking to my daughter last night. She was telling me hilarious things that I was saying through hallucinations after surgery. I can't remember very much of it but I guess I kept the kids entertained. And as for sneezing, I have officially given up pepper.

Songs: I Can't Stop and Let Me Down Easy by Bettye LaVette, and the James Taylor classic, Something In the Way She Moves. This is not to be confused with The Beatles song.

Saved in the East

I had a computer scare earlier and thought that the computer had fried but all is well, I'm only late. It's very big news that one third of the island is without electricity. The photographs on the news were incredible with thick ice covering everything. In one photo the space between two telephone lines had formed a sheet. I'd never seen anything like it. What is very strange is that here in our community in the East, there is not a drop of ice. We were on the warm side of the front and what slight amount we had yesterday melted overnight. We didn't lose power at all. The western part of the province will not be fully restored for days.

Gotta be quick. Music: Some rain songs. Fire and Rain from James Taylor and Feels Like Rain from Bonnie Raitt and Buddy Guy

It's Winter Already

As you can imagine the stores are very busy. I had to go in to make an exchange for a gift that I discovered had a problem when I went to wrap it. Huge line ups and tons of traffic. I only had that errand, a gift drop off, and a stop at the grocery store. I'm much happier at home that in that schmozzle. It was funny that I ran into a couple who I last ran into Christmas shopping last year. I said I hope to see them this time next year too.

My niece called today. She is addicted to her computer like I am and her hard drive is going. It's terrible when these things happen at holiday time. For her to go to an electronics store anytime in the next week will be pretty close to hellish. I was so lucky to have a brother in law who helped me out. The ethernet card was only twenty bucks so that was pretty painless too. I had bad luck this week and good luck too.

In the Bleak Midwinter is a favorite seasonal song for many. I have a few versions. Today is one by James Taylor and one by Allison Crowe. The weather hardly seems like the bleak midwinter. It is going to be eight degrees and raining tomorrow. Bring it on!!

I Need Sleep

e
Would anyone like some hot flashes? Maybe some night sweats? I'd be happy to give some away. They aren't as severe as they were a year ago but they are disturbing my sleep and I'm tired during the day. I don't like that at all. I get teased a bit because I'm very time oriented but it's the way I am....can't help it.

We're having another cold couple of days. It rains all around us but does not rain here and we so need a good soaking. My grass looks like it's August.

Meant to report on the music stats for the month. Don't Lie is now at 1678 hits, exactly 50 plays this month.

Music: 'At night I wake up with the sheet's soaking wet' is a line from Springsteen's song, I'm On Fire. Sounds like he know's all about night sweats and hot flashes. Here is Swati with a nice quiet version. Since I have a Springsteen song done by someone else, here's one of his songs done live by him and James Taylor. Since Bruce knows about hot flashes and night sweats, I think that The River is not about an actual river but about night sweats. What do you think?

Fire and Ice

This is the collage of the school house fire I wrote about a couple of weeks ago.
It looks very hot.

Very heavy frost overnight last night. It didn't get above zero till about ten am.

I took this photo at 9:23. It looks very cold.

I'm very excited to be going to see some live music tomorrow night. A couple of musicians are playing at the Confederation Center Theater, a nice, soft seat venue. I saw one of them, JP Cormier there in February during the ECMA's. The other, blues guy Matt Andersen, we tried and tried to get in to see at that time but he was always sold out. Speaking of February and live music, I found out last night that Van is playing in Calgary on the 27th of February. I called my daughter immediately but for some reason she's not as excited as I would be. She is suggesting that I come visit her at that time. I just might.

I had my walk today but had several stops so didn't really get a long cardio session happening. It is quite nice, warm and sunny after the cold night with the heavy frost. The Island beauty will release endorphins even if your walk is not so fast or prolonged so I'm feeling pretty sweet.

Music: One of the many live versions of Moondance by Van Morrison is always in order. Today's photos are of fire and ice. I have no such song but I do have Fire and Rain by James Taylor, a great oldie, in my opinion.

For a link I have a great photographer who photographs Burning Man and sorts the photos into categories. I've always been extemely interested in Burning Man and would love to go sometime so I like this site. I have the photo a day page of the official Burning Man site on my blogroll so visit it every day. Those photos are from many photographers. Today's is very cool.

No Time Left

Thought about going to the beach for the daily walk today....until I got outside. Its very cold and windy, not beach weather at all! Was trying on clothing yesterday and have gained weight already since stopping work so I may be having two or three walks per day. I'm sure as heck not giving up eating. It weird having been thin my whole life to have my whole body change after giving up smoking ten months ago. Healthier, I guess.....

Music: Another of my thirteen versions of A Change is Gonna Come by Sam Cooke who I believe is the writer of the song but I'm not positive of that. It's a great song whomever wrote it. Another song that I have a lot of versions of is Baby It's Cold Outside, a song appropriate for today. Here's a version by James Taylor and I believe, Natalie Cole. I'll check that fact out and also who wrote A Change is Gonna Come.

No time for a link today. The phone hasn't stopped since I started this post.