I saw a frightening thing the other day.  I was walking along the sidewalk, a father was pushing his daughter toward me in a stroller.  She may have been 3 or 4 years old.  She was talking on a plastic toy phone!  Nattering away the whole time, copying her elders, engrossed in her conversation with herself.

just realized that it might have been a real phone!!!  If it was then that's even worse - an phone addict even before she's in school!

Northern Lights

I suppose there are lots of people who have never seen the Milky Way.  Growing up in the country I was used to being able to see the sky and the stars.  I remember my father showing me where the Big Dipper, Little Dipper and the North Star were and the Milky Way of course.  There weren't a lot of lights around to interfere.   Moonlight was wonderful in the forest around our house, I was never afraid of the dark.  

Best of all I've seen the Northern Lights a few times in my life, a couple of times faintly when I was a child.  It was always a big event, everyone come outside and look.  Although I grew up in the country, it was close to a big city, and got more and more built up as the years passed.  Doubt if you can even see many stars there now.

The most dramatic Aurora Borealis I ever saw was in Manitoba in October.  I was sent out there for my job back in the 80's.  It's a very awe inspiring thing to stand outside at night in the mystery of the dark, to look up and see this eerie shimmering dance across the sky.  Manitoba is so flat, the sky was huge and the lights rose high above.  A rare memory.

Here in the city I still watch for the moon, catch a glimpse of the odd star.  I try to remember to look up.

Buddies

I've been fostering these little guys since they were six weeks old (now they are eight months old).  Their mother was feral, so she couldn't come inside with them.  Toronto Cat Rescue had her spayd and returned to her colony.  

For a while the kittens had a foster mother whose kittens had just been adopted.   She seemed glad to have more kids to look after so there were no problems.  She would even let them suck on her sometimes even though there was no milk!!   Originally there were four of them, but one cute grey fluffy one was adopted as soon as they were put on the website.   In November another one plus the foster mother found their a forever homes.  Now there are only two of them left.  They are very sweet cats, they romp and play with each other and they also look after each other.

I confess I broke down and adopted the one myself - Pico, the one with the heart on his shoulder and the white tip on his tail.   Now I'm not sure I can separate him from his brother, so I may have to adopt him too!  

Update: the guy who adopted his brother in November sent me a Facebook message that he's thinking of a second cat.  So he might take him.  I've got mixed feelings, but Pico gets along well with one of my other male cats, so he'd get over the loss of his brother.  And Yas would have company; right now he's an only cat and alone all day.

I'm trying to think of it as decluttering cats!

visible Monday

I love this Akris jacket, but I haven't worn it much.   In the spirit of either use it or toss it, I'm going to start using it.  Slim black pants, white tshirt under were easy choices.  My Art boots to provide a bit of whimsy  At the last minute I thought a scarf at the neck would be a good idea so I grabbed a little pink pattern silk square.  I'd rather have something with more punch, but I was already late for work.

This is what I do with my wardrobe - I buy a bunch of unrelated things that I love when I buy them, but no idea of an outfit for them so they hang in my closet while I wear the same sweater/pants combinations over and over.  Laziness!!!

I have never participated in this but I love the idea, hope I can do this link thing correctly!  http://notdeadyetstyle.blogspot.com/

the freedom of space?

Reading today about how someone who decluttered has more space to be creative.  She got on a path of 'shoulds' in her 20's - should have a career, a house, a car, clothes, furnishings etc.  When letting go she found a more creative life was possible.  Don't know if it's automatic - declutter = artistic creation.  I still like to have things around that hold memories.

The interesting part of her post was the career thing.  I think back to my very early twenties sometimes.  I was living in a little house outside of a small town called Aldergrove BC.  I didn't have a job, I stayed home and cooked on a wood stove, went for walks with the dog, knit, sewed or whatever I wanted to do every day.  I was in the country, living a simple life which was what I wanted, so I remember feeling very content.  I had no particular ambition - I was a free spirit.

don't know where this is, but it's very like Ontario countryside that I love

One day my partner was killed no let's be honest here at least, he killed himself.  And my life changed direction drastically.  I came back to the big city of Toronto and got a job to support myself.  Then a career developed, I found another man who I married, we got a house, and continued the good middle class materialist lifestyle of the 80's.  Job advancement, better house, BMW, etc.  Until I had surgery in 2008 I never had more than three weeks away from the job in thirty years.

this is the view outside my office building

I sometimes wonder about the direction my life would have taken if I had not changed to the career mode and I had stayed in BC.  Would I have been an artist?  or an organic farmer?  both have been deep desires of mine, pushed aside because I hear a practical (probably it's my mother's) voice telling me I couldn't do it.

I'm near retirement now, but sometimes I still just want to get rid of the stuff, quit my job, take the animals and go live on a farm!