Where Did They Go?

Did you hear the news? What news? Betsy’s dead. Poor Betsy….Who??? You know…Betsy, down the street.

Friends
From: Morguefile
By: Taliesin

I remember them when they were such a vibrant couple in our neighboruhood.  Every time I was walking Puppy Jakita, I passed their home and Bob was always outside….perfecting the lawn in the summer, spring and fall… tweaking dead flower petals, cutting the lawn…I swore he got on his hand and knees, and with a pair of scissors, cut the lawn…because each blade was the same exact length… and that grass was such a shade of vibrant green.

In the winter, Bob would be out there too, blowing snow…then using different shovels to sculpt the snow to perfection on the path to their front steps as well as on their two driveways….one for Betsy’s car and one for Bob’s…same model…same year…same colour. Yes, they had a garage… but what if some oil leaked… No the garage was Bob’s Man Den…he wasn’t sharing it with a car… Still, he was so friendly like…taking time to lean on his shovel and have a chat…pat Jakita…golly, he would even chat up the homeless, that wandered up and down our streets to get to the Food Bank, at the big church on the corner…and not everyone is kind to them…you know…

Life in the country

Meanwhile, Betsy was in their home….so perfect…just a scrubbing and a polishing, vacuuming…not a cobweb or a spec of dirt in their home. I called her Martha Stewart…to her face…behind her back…I even got a stepping stone to put in my garden that said…’not Martha’s garden’……No siree! She would be busy in her head planning the next family get together, jotting down what she had to pick up at various stores and mapping the route to ensure she went the most cost effective way so as not to waste gas…do you believe how much it costs these days? One can hardly afford a car these days …and the insurance premiums we have to pay…don’t get me started…as Betsy would say…

And not only her home sparkled and shone…so did Betsy. She would never leave her house without her clothes, hair and makeup absolutely perfect…not like me…sometimes I look like a model on the runway…sometimes I look like that bag lady I see in the donut shop across the way. And let’s talk about her hair…always same length, same style, same colour…with a little help from her friends, I’m thinking… obviously…Bob’s hair also always looks same length, impeccably styled with just a hint of a few grey strands. They were a gorgeous couple.

Yup, that is Momma’s wedding….

Still, even they had their troubles over the years…like sudden family deaths, a granddaughter with brittle diabetes, Betsy fighting cancer…and then all those home invasions. Unfortunately for Betsy and Bob their house was positioned in such a fashion, that neighbor hood watch couldn’t see any door or windows that the burglars utilized to gain entry. I told them…I did …put a sign up warning any home invaders all the valuables had already been stolen…the expensive jewelry, electronics, small appliances (well, you know, home invaders can’t just walk out the front door with a state of art refrigerator and not be seen…if they tried to walk it up the street, we nosy neighbours would ask…where you taking Bob and Betsy’s fridge).

Then the real troubles began.  We all have were trying to find something, walk into the next room…and say darnation…what did I come in here for?  Still this was way worse.  First it was little, easy to explain, lapses of memory, confusion over what he was doing, where he was going… which evolved to Betsy entering the kitchen, and say…hey Bob…and he would look at her and say…who are you again?

Sometimes Betsy would wake up  in the night and find Bob missing from there bed. The first time she was frantic…then it became routine. She’d find him sitting on the front steps in his pajamas and slippers…in the brutal winter… his homeless friends were sitting there with him…high on crack…(Not Bob), passing a beer around…friendly like. Yes, they used the food food bank but had money for crack and beer…. Funny that…Betsy had no way out…She had to tell her adult children…and that discussion about ‘what to do with Father’ had to be hammered out.

Then, overnight it seemed, Bob became physically ill and was taken to the hospital by ambulance …and he never returned, no, he never returned…never to cut his lawn or shovel his snow again…whatever all it was, it went stunningly fast and next thing you know we were all comforting Betsy and attending Bob’s funeral….and now you tell me… ten months later…Betsy is dead. What happened??

Those were the days….

What happened…the stress of the last few years…having to be a 24/7 caretaker…well, her cancer returned, aggressive and unrelenting, and Betsy chose…no treatment…been there…done that…given the T-Shirt at the Cancer Walkathon to raise funds to help heal other patients. Betsy went out with style and grace, not losing a strand of her perfectly coiffured hair… Betsy did it her way….

We miss you Bob. We miss you Betsy…They don’t make them like they used to anymore.

Delta Dawn – Did We Hear You Say?

Now you see her…Now you don’t. Fr: Morguefile

In the continuing saga of Now you see her…Now you don’t… no worries…. we, the Children of the Forest, are still on the trail of our fearless, mysterious Delta Dawn.

Being sound of body and mind, (well, almost), the  Children of the Forest soon understood Father’s methods of Record Keeping of the Journal of Maps….It seemed every 7 years or so he updated the properties, their owners and had been doing so for the last 21 years or so…before that my Grandfather had kept the Journal, previous to that my Great Grandfather and so on and so on.

Delta Dawn’s Ramshackle Homestead, Fr: Morguefile

And so we flipped back through the pages, seeing VACANT noted on the Ramshackle Property, map after map…until some 40-50 years ago and then like a light in the wilderness it read: Property of Tom McEarnuff.   Who??? No such family lived among us now….no students at our school had that last name…we had plenty of Mc’s living in the area, but no Earnuffs…It also listed his wife’s name and their 4 children as well as listed their livestock – 2 horses, 4 cows, some sheep, chickens and a pigHow bizarre, how bizarre.

Another roundtable was necessary for the Children of the Forest to take a vote, have a consensus…maybe it was time to ask Father for further information if we really wanted to see Delta Dawn again. Now everyone knew Father’s ability to spin a tale for at least 7 counties but if  they made him understand the gravity of the outcome, maybe Truth and Reconciliation would follow.

The forest trees and alley…

With some skepticism and fingers crossed, the Children of the Forest, marched from their  Club House, and filed in the living room where Father was busy reading a National Geographic.  Mother was knitting more mittens because winter always was coming, often ahead of schedule.

The designated speaker of the Children of the Forest said, ‘Father, no more tall tales, no more half truths, we are here for the Truth so we can have Reconciliation.  Who are the McEarnuffs and where did they go? In our hearts, we know Delta Dawn was a McEarnuff and we hear her calling us to help her get home.  Please Father.’

Father looked at Mother, Mother looked at Father…silence followed with only the ticking of the Grandfather clock in the corner, rooting them to the past and the here and now.

With a sigh, Father said. ‘It is complicated.  I must speak to all the parents of the Children of the Forest before I share the truth, as we know it.  It is not only my story to tell. If all the parents are in agreement we will move forward. Just be patient a while longer.’

Star Dust fr: Morguefile

Had we uncovered a ‘Secret Never To Be Told’ or was Father yanking our chain, giving himself time to spin an epic fabrication…the man could write movies with his untethered, wondering mindwas it because he read all those National Geographic, ya think?

Delta DawnDid we hear ya say…you were meeting him here today????

Well, long as your stars align…..

Delta Dawn, Wherever Have You Gone?

Where the Children of the Forest hid behind trees to spy on Delta Dawn.

And then one day, on the 2nd Summer of her arrival, Delta Dawn was Gone.Baby.Gone.  The Children of the Forest diligently stalked the ramshackle old house, the alley she used to float down, for days, until we reached the unsavoury consensus, she had left, like she had come, disappearing like a soap bubble in to an unknown destination….And so, it was time to ask our inscrutable, sworn to secrecy, Mother and Father  just where was our Fallen Angel, Delta Dawn ?

It seems like Adults love Secrets, even more than their own kin because, total Poker Faced, one parent lying, the other swearing to it, Father said he heard (think Peter Rabbit???), Delta Dawn had been assigned another location where there were even more corrupt folks than ourselves, who had Lessons to Learn in order to find The Way, The Truth and The Light….we didn’t (really) believe him. 

In tandem, we rolled our eyes, filed outside and headed to what was once called our Play House…renamed our Little House and newly Christened our Club House (so much more mature, we thought) to brainstorm possibilities, run them up a flag pole, Plan-Do-Check-Act.

Eyes to roll

We Baby Boomers weren’t tethered to Social Media for entertainment… ‘in the day’…. we met face-to-face, we invented games, competitions and actually read books like Nancy Drew’s The Mystery of the Missing Candlesticks and the Hardy Boys, The Haunting at Echo Lake.  We considered ourselves to be First Class Detectives and Sleuths so…

So someone suggested we borrow our Auntie’s Ouija Board and ask it where Delta Dawn was hanging out, but after discussing it at length, we decided that that the Board gave such vague responses, which could be translated so many ways, so let’s shelf that idea for now. (Note: Not Reject… Maybe revisit in future if all else failed.)

Next someone brought forth the idea that maybe Auntie Spinster (christened Auntie out of respect, not related by blood) could read our Tea Leaves.  She did a great job of telling us we would all go far, get married, have children, live happily ever after. The only problem…she was a Never-to-Be-Trusted-Adult and if any of us let it slip that our intentions were to find Delta Dawn, she may tell our parents who would nip the idea (and us) in the bud.  We might endure House Arrest for the rest of the Summer….Probably best not to pursue this Chain of Action if your Freedom was at stake.

But there is always an answer, as long as there is a question… in’it? Our family had the original deeds of all the surrounding properties passed down through the generations….we’d see if that would lend a clue or two.

It was, as you can imagine, a huge convoluted Journal of Maps and names  listing of every family.  Surely it would show the ramshackle old house, its listed owner and his progeny…..maybe the very missing clue to find our Fallen Angel, Delta Dawn.

Father kept the Journal, with its strange hieroglyphics, at the bottom of an old trunk, up in the attic, away from little snooping eyes because it listed every birth, even those who were stillborn or born ‘on the wrong side of the blanket’ as the Old Folks would say….and it wasn’t any of our business to know the details, according to our Mother and Father.  

We are strong…we are invincible…we are children…in the day.

Even families in the Children of the Forest held such pink and blue surprises and somehow we would have to bypass that information as to not bring them embarrassment….everyone knew…but ssshhh…it’s still a Secret….And ya never knew when you’d need them to help build a barn, birth a child or help out at the Church Bazaar…so, as mentioned in other revelations, Country Folk play the Long Game…Never Forget…. yet Never Reveal…

So…Hang on Delta Dawn….We’re gonna rescue you….Hang on Delta Dawn….We’re gonna rescue you….

Working Nine to Five

It’s my job, Man!

This is the dullest job…The dullest job that ever could be….It could be done by anyone… Instead…It’s done by me!

The Auditors ask the same questions…About probabilities, curves and projections….Trying to find my errors…Like a lawyer… I’m always defending….

Now to be President…That’s so me….Comes with honor, brains and status…Please set me free…I got all Three…Oh, that those who have eyes…Could see…

So for now, best bury my ambitions…No Executive decisions cast by me…. As I work on… Scheming up my future..Dreams take me where I want to be…..                                       

Cuz: Working Nine to Five…What a way to make a living…..

In the Day

In the Day.

It’s not like I know much about ‘in the day’…but of course, being a Baby Boomer, Momma does.  Now we know our Momma  has been known to underplay, overplay and exaggerate (well, at least stretch) the truth, but in every story there is a grain of truth with a lesson to be learned, so I pay attention….mostly.

One story Momma told me was about attending weddings ‘in the day’.  No  $100,000.00 Cinderella Fairytale wedding with limos, a Paradise Venue providing  six course meals with a nine foot tall wedding cake made out of frosted filler and actual cake layers, a DJ to ‘Get the Party Started’,  a huge display of Fireworks….then a Food truck arrives, in the wee hours, with sliders, while tables  groan with cakes, squares, chocolate fountains, candy…oh, I forgot the Photo Booth to memorialize the Best.Wedding.Ever……

Grandmama & Grandpapa, ‘in the day’ – married 1941- Momma was a no show – a ’50’s kid.

In the Day’ (say 1940’s-50’s), the Bride and Groom married in a simple ceremony and the Minister announced to the congregation (which consisted of family members, from both sides, friends and neighbors), an invitation to the bride’s home to celebrate the joining of two families till death did they part….no invitations were sent out…no RSVP necessary.  Once they had all arrived, home made wine or spirits were passed around to the men, while the women were offered tea or coffee, and the kids were served Cool Aid. Then the women got busy in the kitchen, setting up the pot luck supper to which they had all contributed.

Now I get to the part that troubles me.  Momma said the men were fed first, so that they could have all they wanted of whatever they wanted…after all men did physical labour, brought home the bacon, so to say.  Once the men were ‘fed up’, the lady guests were invited to eat…and…if there was any food left over, the children could share it.  At many the wedding, anniversary, Momma said, she and the other kids sat on the long, steep, dark staircases, praying there would be leftovers…if not, Her-Mother-God-Rest-Her-Soul, fed her kids when they returned home. I mean, dogs are treated better today….

No More Barn Cats….Morguefile By: MaryBaird

I roll my big brown eyes when Momma starts on how spoiled and pampered we dogs and cats are today in comparison to ‘in the day’.  Momma tells me cats lived in the barn, in the heat of the summer, or in the Arctic Vortex in the dead of winter…when I shuddered Momma said, ‘what…they could get in a stall with a horse or cow for warmth.’ Now my eyes are not just rolling, they are spinning around in circles.  I love our kitties…who could do that….well, Momma conceded, sometime in the 1960’s, Her-Mother-God-Rest-Her-Soul, started bringing the cats indoors and they not only quickly and quietly took over,  they also never left….pity, that.

Momma says the dogs were always allowed in doors (at her home, anyway) because they were supposed to be Guard Dogs…mostly they slept through anyone coming to and through the door, didn’t even raise their head or wag their tail at the intruders…   not like there was much to steal but children and everyone had as many as they wanted at home already.

Fancy me a Guard Dog…I just may deafen and lick intruders to death…

Anyway, it would be hard to stop these country folk entering since doors were never locked…starting at 6:am you never knew who was going to amble by, have a cup of coffee on his way to a full day of cutting hay, lumber, wool off sheep ….whatever needed to be done…no specialists, in the day’….

Now pets were never bought high protein, vitamin enriched dry food in bags or little trays of roasted to perfection wet food…the cats lived on a lot of field mice and bread soaked in milk.  Dogs got only food scraps, leftovers. Now I love human food and I get a bit and a bite every day. Our Vet is obsessed with my weight (give me my way, I’d eat till I dropped) so everything I consume, Momma knows the Calorie Count, if I had enough exercise to burn  and churn them…so even with my most begging eyes I cannot swindle more… just saying…Praise God I wasn’t born ‘in the day’ and….

As Forest Gump would say: ‘That’s all I gotta say about that subject….’ 

Worst.Idea.Ever

Recent pic of Momma and Her WonderBoy …. she consults him for financial success.

Momma was talking to our WonderBoy about going to see her Financial Planner and I asked (with my eyes, of course)…like what the heck is that…and she understood my query…because that’s a Momma’s speciality…or so it seems.

Apparently, you give your  hard earned money from over the years to a sound (but not high risk) Financial Institution who invests it for you at an agreed upon commission (nawthing’s free, as Uncle would say) who toss it in a pool with other investors…. (like copper pennies… make a wish…cross your fingers)…

Bears can tear you and the market to shreds.

Then you pray for a charging Bull Market…not a destructive Bear Market…but it is not like when Momma went out to work everyday and brought home a set salary (whether she applied herself or not – are you kidding…Momma would always apply herself or die trying…so she says).

With the Investing Scenario…you just never know…the tech world goes in a tailspin, your net worth drops.

China or India sigh, more trouble in the bottom line, the US President cancels trade deals, keep your head low….Should you stay the course or get the heck out of Dodge???  Makes me ponder where my next dog bones might come from? Should I, Jakita become a Working Dog?

Now can you just see me going out the door, waving buh-bye to Momma with a fanny pack strapped around my rotund belly, stuffed full of food, treats and bottled water.  I would be an excellent Sniffer Dog at the Airport because I have a keen sense of smell be it money, drugs and especially food and the bugs that come with it and a most aggravating bark to signal ‘I got a hit’ …then I heard those dogs only get paid in love and food…and I already have plenty of that from Momma and WonderBoy….without getting my fanny and pack out the door…..

Certainly I would be absolutely great at herding the farmers’ sheep, cows or even cats (lot of cat experience on my Resume) but most farmers are high on love and low on money…if the Federal Government can’t pay me at the airport, forget getting paid by farmers…deep sigh.

Okay, Okay I got it, I’ll become a Dog Model, walk the runway, strut my stuff, get in to advertising….a dog can make a killing at ads these days and everyone says I have a beautiful face, soulful eyes and a coat of fur that gleams and glistens from white to tan to various shades of brown, speckled with auburn and gold….just one problem…that rotund belly…I would have to diet…and well…that’s not happening…any time soon….

A Bull can charge with such speed, taking markets high. Fr: Morgue File: American Bison

Seems like there is only one solution….to give up Doggie Prayers for a Bull Run so that Momma’s portfolio will grow and I don’t have to bring in money to support the family…

So Tech World, no hacking, China & India, no sighing, Mr. President of the Free World, behave….Momma and I are depending on you…

(Oh, my)…. Worst.Idea.Ever.

Delta Dawn, What’s That Flower You Have On?

In the country…deep in the country, you know everyone…..their names and the nicknames assigned to them…

Everyone knew Runaway Daisy & Runaway Fawn.
From Morguefile.com
DSCF9355.JPGBy milza
abc03.jpgBy inkogutto

Nessie and Nestor stayed in their own lane…no jumping fences to escape.

Hey, you even know the names of their dogs, cats, horses, cows, piggies, their picky hens and noisy roosters ….so when some stranger appears, he or she is quickly scrutinized, categorized and assigned an identifying tagline based on appearance, attitude and what we perceive as aptitudelike a trucker’s handle, with more thought put in to it…. (What else do we have to do?).

So World, meet Delta Dawn…. One night, just after sunset, she just was there, walking down the middle of the unpaved road…..

Flower for Delta Dawn’s hair….

a flower in her hair, carrying what seemed to be a baby in a knitted shawl, she floated past us, her feet barely contacting the ground. She was tall with long blonde hair flowing past her waist, the face of an angel, so ethereal, so other worldly, so named Delta Dawn.

Where did she come from? Where was she going?

We the Good Children of the Forest, hid behind the bushes and spied on her, noting her apparel, her habits and her rigid routine…it seemed she had taken up residence in that unpainted ramshackle old house with the broken windows, sagging porch and gate with the missing slats.

The Walk Time, set in stone. Fr: Morguefile

Every night after sunset, she would push open the creaky front door, near off its hinges, walk carefully down the path to the alley, dressed in ankle length pastel dress of pink or blue or mint green or light lemon or a splashy floral of pastels, a fresh flower in her hair, flat sandals, cradling what we believed to be her baby, (after heated discussion and differences of opinion).  It was like a uniform, of sorts…always the same, always changing…in the winter she wore a long black coat, black lace up boots and a black hat, held in place by a thick net black scarf….with her long blonde hair still flowing down her back.

Back in the day, there were no libraries so we ran home and sought answers from the smartest people in our world, our parents – it was summer, so it was not like we could ask our teachers – anyway, seemed our parents were much smarter than those who had been hired to actually educate us…..Mother said, well, no one seemed to know much about her, not even Peg-Legged Jack or Mad-As-A-Hatter Maddie, or the Spinster Twins, Ina and Ivy, not even born the same day but we couldn’t tell them apart – ask your Father, Mother said (maybe sardonically)…He knows everything. 

Now Father was our Last Resource because he had a way of spinning fact and fiction, so although it might be a mighty good story, it could never be proven scientificallyNot letting truth get in our way, we asked Father….and he had an answer (When did he not have an answer?) which brought more questions to our already hyperactive minds.

An Angel that still has her wings…..

Delta Dawn, it seemed was a Fallen Angel, injected into our otherwise mundane life to teach us the lesson of what will happen to us if we didn’t walk the Straight and Narrow…Hadn’t we noticed on the back of her shoulders, down to her rib cage on each side, a small bony protrusion where her wings were once attached….Because of some grievous sin Delta Dawn committed, her wings fell off and she dropped to the Earth, landing where she was most needed….to show us the Way, the Truth and the Light.

We begged for more answers….what had Delta Dawn done that she would be so punished….what had we done that Delta Dawn was sent to live among us…so many questions…but Father took the Fifth Amendment….One day, when the time is right, all will be revealed, he said…Mother reminded us how she had said your Father knows everything, as they exchanged, I swear, it was a smirk…

No wings for the Wicked….

I promise, I am working on it…and as soon as I know, you will know because a riddle without an answer is like a pig without a poke….So…

Delta Dawn, what’s that flower you have on?…Could it be a faded rose from days gone by? ….And did I hear you say he was a-meeting you here today? … To take you to his mansion in the sky?

Night Falls

The Road to some where, or no where…Fr: Morgue files.

The uneasiness of not knowing the road…On which we travel…Wraps around us like a long, black cloak…

Looking in my eyes

Looking in my eyes, you see fear…Of the Unknown…Haunting our present, overshadowing our future…

Night Time Is The Right Time.
From Morguefile.com
IMG_0522.jpgBy wallenberg

Awakened in the night, by creaking floorboards…I ponder the odds…And face a grim reality of failure…

But when the morning sun bathes…The world in splendor…All troubles are on hold, till night falls again…

You May Be Right….I May Be Wrong

Former FLOTUS, Former FLOTUS, Former FLOTUSeven North of the 49th Parallel, we are hearing rumors….that you may be considering….running for Leadership in the upcoming Roller Derby Party Race. Why? Why? Why?  How many times must the mule kick you before you concede, well. some people at large…. they just don’t trust you?

Oh, don’t be hurt, Former FLOTUSno one trusts anyone anymore.  You and your Spouse, the Former POTUS have sharp minds, but too much well, dirty laundry….Wall Street Executives will pay dearly to hear you or him speak, press the flesh, so to say…putting their hand over the one side of their mouth, whispering in your ear…

Yakety yak…yakety ya… ignore them….

Go for it, Former FLOTUS’…then they deftly cup hand to the other side of mouth and say to their colleagues… with a smirk,… ‘Is she freaking suicidal????’ But ignore them…. Because, well, you forgot more about politics than they’ll ever know…and you are no one trick ponya savvy lawyer, a fearsome politician, a roll with the punches spouse, mother, grandmother and of course, a much admired Former FLOTUS…but please…do yourself a solid…. don’t run for POTUS…..

Not that I think you deserve all the criticism leveled at you, Former FLOTUS…you’ve made mistakes…but everyone does… (Even me, but not many…and not on the grand scale that you manage…LOL).  It is just I just feel so on edge when you throw your hat in, first to be chewed up by the Right…it is their duty, then by the left…it is Bernie’s duty

Look closely…a dragon peeks out of the flames. Morguefile
By: GaborfromHungary

And finally by the current Fire Breathing Dragon, the current POTUS, who is never fact based, but has Super Powers to turn constituents brain in to mush…so that they actually vote for him…and say…woe is me…a lot. But I try not judge them too harshly

No judgement on our behalf….Here on the other side of the Invisible Wall, (phew), our brains must be scrambled too….didn’t the majority vote in a Tea Party Right Premier Dad, who had a brother that was the Mayor of our largest city.  That Mayor kept the journalists and the City Council busy with his partying and poor life style choices…now RIP Mayor…Caught In the Act every time with his booze, hookahs and low life companions…somehow even then, he was more likable than his Premier Brother. We can’t blame themfrom one of those blue blood lines, that were born with silver spoons…seems to mix kids up…not bring them up.

So I am tuned in, trying to get this message to you from a Centrist who believes even though you play the tough take it all routine, you’re fragile…don’t let that Mule and Fire Breathing Dragon deflate you, like a balloon losing air, in tiny increments again…From this side of the under privileged world we live in…being President is not all it has been made out to be…. just ask The Fire Breathing Dragon Quack!

I may be wrong….

End of day…don’t listen to me…go where your ♥ dictateswhat-do-I-know??? But not only you hurt when you are trashed, (just cuz they can)…then lose… so does your loyal supportive Former POTUS spouse, your  family, friends and all of your true supporters, who truly care for your well-being.

Then again, You may be right…I may be wrong …It just may be that stress is what you’re looking for…. 🙂

Snowflakes

All the world's a stage.....
All the world’s a stage…..

We all know all the world’s a stage and our bit parts are not to be taken seriously folks so best to keep your sense of humour forefront or you might be blindsided and bitter ….and that will get you nothing but the curse of high blood pressure and ulcers.

So it came to pass one Sunday morning, maybe late September, Momma was walking me and right at our intersection there were city vehicles parked haphazardly, up and down the street, blue lights rotating, walkie talkies blaring…it seemed we had sprung a water leak and Sunday was optimum time to fix it….the diligent contractors would get triple time for Emergency Weekend Work…but heck, the council could raise the taxes to cover costs…so it is all good.  Even as night fell, daylight turned in to dark, more vehicles came, crowding every side street, bright lights, illuminating the interior of every home for blocks, we suspect.

Now two months later, winter on the way, in the dead of night, a letter is slipped in to every mailbox announcing the water would be turned off at 2am that very night for 12 hours to make routine maintenance…so tell me, in what world do city folk live….

Summer time may be the best time....
Summer time may be the best time….

Wouldn’t spring, summer, or even early fall be a better time to do routine maintenance…like when the ground it not frozen….just asking….

Momma pulled an RIP Daddy and called City Hall…were they really going to do it tonight…with the 1st snowstorm moving in to dump 15 to 20 cm of snow?  The chirpy administrator said, oh yes, …if there is a change we’ll let you know….Momma’s thinking about Maintenance vehicles all over the street, side-walk and road snow ploughs trying to move through…chaos, it’s called, chaos.

Being highly organized and practical,  Momma went in to 1st gear, (does she have any other), filling buckets with water, pots and pans with water, my little white grooming tub to the brim with water, jugs with water, even the kettles got filled with waterhaving watched some Walking Dead, she was prepared for Armageddon…one that never came, I must report, because although no notification of cancellation to the routine maintenance came, the snow storm showed up….like, did City Planners not have the Weathernet App?  And so all the water, captured in vain, wasted actually, went down the drains, probably overloading an already compromised system, oh and remember….conserve, conserve, conserve water in a world where so many live without it.  

As life spun out other challenges, the routine water maintenance was pushed to the back of Momma’s mind…but then front and centre, a couple of weeks later at 2am on a Sunday night, the crews moved back in.  Momma woke to the sounds of heavy-duty vehicles, like army tanks, out front, breaking the nightly silence with their insistent running, chatter, the bright white lights bathing her home like the Yankee Stadium…..but no notification???? Well, they had snuck a note in the mailbox sometime Sunday but who checks their mailboxes when there is no delivery that day…so you guessed it…no water harvested….

SnowflakesSomehow, we made it through, hallujah…. somehow the City completed their work within 11.5 hours…so it was all good….I know, I know, so first World Problem…because well… we are such snowflakes, piling high and melting at the first hint of heat.  Yes, those Third World Problem Solvers are pointing a finger, busting a gut laughing at us as they struggle with thirst, hunger, homelessness and war zones…so it is our little Secret… (our dirty laundry???), we got to keep our Pride in tact…especially when the Two Footed can’t shower, make coffee,  wash dishes or horror of horror….or even flush their toilets for 12 hours….Truth be told even the Four Footed of the First World are snowflakes that melt at the hint that their life is disrupted…by anything…

May God Have Mercy on Snowflakes.