attackfish

A whole bunch of things are happening here right now. First off, I mentioned in my previous post that I got two new cockatiel sisters, Rhyme and Reason to keep Sully company. I had them quarantined upstairs for a week, and Sully, who had been singing out lonely cockatiel songs, calling for a buddy, sang to them for the whole week, and they sang back. As soon as I brought them down stairs, they flew into his cage and made themselves at home. He is thrilled to bits to have company, and everybody is getting along beautifully.

Secondly, we got Daisy once upon a time to be a buddy for Suzy, my mom’s three-year-old six pound maltese/dachshund mix, who when shee doesn’t have a buddy turns into an anxious, domineering little monster. So once Daisy was gone and the house was safe again, the first order of business was to find her a new buddy, because while Daisy was quarantined away from the other dogs, Suzy was living with me and my boys, and she was making everybody miserable. We found a little one-year-old five pound yorkie/something mix (I think yorkie/poodle) who will probably be six pounds when he isn’t so boney. We’ve named him Teddy, and he is as cute as he can be. The first day, Suzy’s nose was really out of joint (didn’t we know that the post of adorable little brat dog has already been filled?) but she quickly got the idea that he was supposed to be her friend and playmate, and she seems to think that makes up for having to share Mom’s attention with him. He and Suzy sleep together, and cuddle, and she’s trying to get him to play, wheen she isn’t stealing all his toys, but he isn’t used to other dogs, and he has no idea what she’s trying to tell him. He’ll figure it out eventually.

Also, today Mom started on a Masters program for nursing. She retired when we moved to Alabama, but she was bored out of her skull, and she always wanted to become a nurse practitioner, so she is. Unfortunately, she broke her ankle two weeks ago, so she had to hike all around campus in a boot. Meanwhile, on Monday, I started my last semester before I graduate, online. And right after graduation, this spring I go right back to school for Early Childhood Ed, because I have finally figured out what I want to do with my life,and it’s teaching very young children. And yes, it did take me this long to figure this out. This decision has helped me pull myself out of the deep well of depression that I have been battling for several years. I’ve also started Taekwondo and running. I know that for a lot of people with depression exercise really doesn’t do much, but for me, it’s just about the only thing that does help that doesn’t give me seizures. I’m really really lucky it works for me. I need about an hour a day of intense exercise, or I start sliding back into the dark place very quickly. Unfortunately, with my chronic illness, sometimes exercise is outright physically impossible, or dangerous. I’ve been managing really well for the most part though, and I can feel my body becoming stronger and building endurance. Last week I earned my yellow belt, and I can now kick at shoulder level. I’m really kind of stupidly proud of myself for that.

Lastly, I’m growing a very late crop of tomatoes. I planted them in the middle of July, but we had a really late growing season in Alabama this year, and we’re predicted to have a warm, summery fall, so hopefully, they will be big enough to give me some tomatoes in the end of September, early October. They’re my first tomato plants, and in typical enthusiastic newbie fashion, I got all organic, heirloom tomatoes, and no, I couldn’t just start out with one or two. I got six. I got organic soil, organic fertilizer, and because if I got twelve seedlings, I got free shipping, I also got organic heirloom basil, sage, and fennel. Okay, I ended up going a little wild, but they were only $4.00 a plant. I got two each of Georgia Streak, Black Brandywine, and Azoychka varieties of heirloom tomatoes, all of which I have eaten before and know I love. I’m especially fond of Black Brandywine tomatoes, and I’m really looking forward to having some I’ve grown.

Also, I cut my hair. Over the last year and a half, my hair has gone from long enough to sit on, to just below shoulder length, to chin length, and now to a pixie cut. I also dyed it red. Everybody in Alabama was been asking me if I went back to my natural color, which is actually a little surreal, since I'm a natural blonde, which is what my hair was before I dyed it red.

Here are the ladies Rhyme as Reason, in their quarantine tank, which is the same tank we used for Sully's hospitalization. Rhyme is the one in the front. She's the friendlier of the two girls, and already knows her name. She likes to sit next to me on the couch and chirp at me when I'm not paying her enough attention. Reason, the one in the back, is more suspicious of me, and bosses her sister around a little. You can't see it in this picture, but she is quite a bit bigger than Rhyme and has a lovely cream and grey chest. I'm working on making friends with her.

Here's Teddy. It's hard to get him to be still long enough for a picture unless he's asleep. That's why it's a little blurry.

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Here he is again, this time resting after we briefly tired him out playing. You can see Mom's broken ankle in the boot in the background.

My tomato and herb plants. They have really perked up since I started giving them filtered water. Municipal water around here has a lot of chlorine in it, and I think that's what was making them unhappy.

Here's the bonus video of Teddy doing the worm on my parents' bed. That's Ziggy, my poodle, interupting him. He's trying to get him to play, but Zig is, uh, as socially awkward as Teddy.