I wake too late again today. The blasted alarm didn’t go off when it was supposed to, so instead of my intended rising time, the dogs don’t wake me up an hour and a half later.
The monster Boxer is, of course, doing her very best to win the tug of war we tend to wage every morning, hanging on my blankets while Knight II is pulling it in the opposite direction, and I try to keep it in place with an occasional threat thrown at the two feints that have serious issues for as far as I’m concerned. Whatever happened to jumping on the boss and licking me awake, I wonder. It might be a little icky, but at least it’s a gentle way of waking up.
In the end, I loose, the way I usually do, and roll out of bed to throw the dogs out before actual mayhem starts.
There were dreams, pleasant ones, too, if the inexplicable jubilance that momentarily floats through my mind is any indication. If not for the being-unable-to-remember-them part, I might actually have had a genuinely cheerful mood today. Hah.
Instead, I hurry through the morning rituals and dodge the monster Trin Trin on my way down the mountain, ending up grabbing her collar to keep her from slamming her head into my legs as if it were a battering ram. I swear there are times when I think there’s not even a remote hint of sanity in the monster. She has this big callus on the top of her head from all the times she uses it as a demolishing device.
Anyone who saw the Tom Hanks film “Turner & Hooch” will know what I’m talking about. Did I ever mention that’s she steadily eating my back door? Well, she is! That’s Trin Trin for you. Totally nuts!
But anyways, I make it safely down to the house, preceding the dogs to the front door for a change, since Amri, who’s still behind the fence, is distracting them from leading the way.
Big brother’s pack welcomes us with their usual racket, first storming at the door I open and then dashing away when Knight II comes barging in, towering over them all and intimidating them with his mere presence.
It is a funny sight, actually, seeing the ferocious Cockers, Portuguese waterdogs and Pointers bravely protecting the door, right until my Great Dane steps through, lowering his head to look at them with apparent interest time and again.
It just never seems to get old for them to go through this particular ritual.
After depositing my computer bag on the counter, snapping Trin Trin on the leash before she can make grandpa’s life miserable, I head back outside to get down today’s laundry, and proceed to hang the next batch before it’s time for breakfast.
The electricity is off today, it has been for at least six hours, or so big brother tells me while I make a quick meal for Yadzia and separate him from the eager pack that would love nothing more than to steal the food from the older Labrador.
Luckily I can already see the effects the extra meals are having on Yadzia. He’s losing that bony look rapidly, and is getting more enthusiastic for the treat every day.
Once the lab is eating, I get to my own breakfast–forced to go without coffee this morning unless I put the kettle on and make myself instant. Opting against that, I pour a tall glass with OJ and drink it over bread and cheese while standing at the counter.
Next comes folding today’s laundry, which, with big brother’s help gets done in record time.
What with the power out, I’m in no hurry to get behind my computer, which only has about 45 minutes of battery power, and decide to get the piled-up canned goods from the pantry and neatly set them into the new cabinet that was hung just last night.
I’m most pleased to find that everything fits beautifully and that there’s even room for more. It’s peculiar how a storage place can overflow in one place and then, with the removal of one shelve and some redesigning can fit twice as much supplies. It does that, however, and by the time I finish setting the kitchen to rights the power goes back on, allowing me to set up the laptop and start on today’s computer work.
Since, up until now, I haven’t yet participated in the new vampire book project yet, I decide to go over big brother’s pages and add my bit.
He’s made a solid start, and all I really need to do is add some atmospheric cosmetics that’ll make a rounder whole of the scene he’s created.
I’m amazed at how his writing style matches mine, finding enjoyment in not having to do the majority of the work for a change, and just enjoying what I read, while placing bits and pieces throughout descriptions and the likes.
Excellent, what with the two of us adding to the story, we might actually get the book done in record time. I can hardly wait to read the end result.
I’m up to page four, having added almost two pages when it is time for me to start dinner. I have a hankering for something with potato today, so after rummaging through the supplies I find what I need to make a nice hardy, vegetarian shepherd’s pie. While putting on milk and water for instant mashed potatoes, adding salt, peppers and a bit of sugar for taste, I gather the fresh produce that’ll fit the dish and start chopping away.
Though little sister likes my shepherd pie, she is hankering for a reheated portion of yesterday’s Asian noodles. So, while I’m cooking the new dish, she is working around me to heat her choice of food.
This endeavor proves how well we designed the new kitchen. We manage to work side by side, exchanging position every once and a while, without actually getting in each other’s way…the way we would have in the old kitchen.
It isn’t until big brother comes to stand nearby, talking about a particularly annoying news report that was on TV this morning, that it gets too crowded–with him come ten more dogs at least, each and every one of them swirling around our feet–and we send him off to the other side of the counter in order to be able to move.
Thirty minutes later, having used the marvelous big oven that crusted the cheese on top of the shepherd’s pie beautifully, it’s time for dinner–little sister promises to eat her share tomorrow–and we all dig in. The dish is a success, and earns itself a spot in the cookbook sometime in the future for sure.
After dinner I spend at least an hour cleaning up, doing the dishes, and removing spilled grout from the tiles, before deciding I have enough room to get the last cabinet from its place by the last piece of counter that still belongs to the old kitchen, and clean it thoroughly.
While the cabinet used to stand up straight, it is the plan that we’ll hang it horizontally this time. It is pretty dirty from being untreated and vulnerable to canine bodies rubbing up against it for more than a year, and some blemishes need to be repaired.
I start using the “mouse” sanding machine, but when it proves to be useless against the dirt that has gathered I take out the heavy duty B&D and spend quite a bit of time sanding it down to the wood until at long last it is ready for painting.
Little sister and brother are obviously not in the mood for remodeling today, but middle sister is game and comes down to help me prime the cabinet and then put on the first layer of red by the time the evening starts to draw to an end.
In the meanwhile, big brother joins in for a bit–at my request–and cuts off a section of the steel racks for the fresh produce, so it’ll fit below the first one. While I don’t like to waste precious materials such as stainless steel, I fully intend to throw the cutoff section away when cleanup time has arrived and little sister comes down to scrub the rack for use. But when middle sister and I are making the rack sturdier during reassembling, I see the section lying there and realize that it is actually still useable.
I mess with it for a bit, and yes, there it is, a perfect basket for fresh fruit, which fits precisely on the bar in the center of the kitchen island.
I LOVE it when we manage to recycle endurable materials, and love it even more when it looks good.
It’s already past midnight when we’re done cleaning, and after doing some quick pull-ups (I always feel I’m missing out on something when I don’t have a workout) on the metal staff hanging in the living room I relax with a pear for a snack and some OJ. After sitting there for half an hour or so, it’s well passed my usual time to move the pack up for the night.
They’re tired, like me, and are actually remarkably calm as we make our way up the mountain and enter my cabin. The temperature is pretty low tonight, certainly compared to today’s pleasantly mild weather, so the heater gets turned on before I feed the dogs and get read to settle behind the computer for my nightly session.
The dogs, who’ve been very patient with all the projects going on these weeks passed, do require some extra attention tonight, crowding around me for a good rubbing on the bed and floor alike.
The monster Boxer is actually snorting her demands on the bed as I stand at the foot-end rubbing her all over until she’s literally chortling her pleasure. She has the cutest way of sniffing and snorting when she’s excited. Hah.
Mosha tries to climb onto my shoulders, the black labs are stroking themselves against my legs like cats, and the rest is trying to get their fair share until I decide they’ve had enough and clap my hands to get them to their resting place of choice.
Half of the pack does exactly that, while the other half looks at me indignantly when I climb on the bed, settle with the computer and log on.
There are some fun chats on the net, no personal messages–which is a first, I believe–and then of course today’s Blog.
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