When neighbors are the best.. there' nothing better.

 As Johnny would say... "I'M HOME".. or at least in my home in the desert.  We arrived early yesterday and had a tons to do... like always.  Spectrum gave me a run for my money, but I beat them.. almost.  At least I didn't give up.

But I digress. When we left our Brea home yesterday, we knew that we had an unwanted visitor in the house.  A little guy (who turned out to be big) and he was NOT INVITED.   So, Miguel (what I call him aka Michael, aka Mikey, aka honey), set some traps for our uninvited friend.  I was praying we were wrong and there was actually NO one visiting.. well, there was someone visiting.  This morning one of Michael's friends went to the house to retrieve something for Michael.  While he was there, he noticed that our intruder had been stopped DEAD in his tracks (or should I say trap).  He told us, but he could not do anything with the distasteful intruder at that time.  Knowing, that I could NEVER leave that intruder sitting on my counter for a MONTH...I called my neighbor (who will be called Todd... I won't tell you if that's his true name or not). Todd, right away went over to our house, went to the kitchen, took the intruder and placed him in a death bag, and proceeded to clean my counter so there would be no remnants of this unwelcomed creature.  (He was unwelcomed because he never even bothered to pay rent).  

This my friend is what you call a true neighbor.  Stepping up in my hour of need.  So, if you ever are as lucky as we are, to have a true neighbor... count your blessings because they come few and far between.

Thank you Todd (if that's your real name), for keeping my house sanitized.  

BTW.. Happy Mother's Day to all and I am now off to the pool.👍

Is life really this difficult?

 Another day.... another hoping to not feel sick and make sure I stay as healthy as possible.  If you are asking me why I'm writing that, it's because, I've been a sickiepoo.

It started last December when I struggled with a bout of diverticulitis and went on antibiotics.  Within about 4 days the pain went away, and I realized that I had to change the way I eat, if I didn't want this to come back.  Well, I started to watch what I eat, and what I do, and unfortunately in February the diverticulitis came back.  This time I had to be admitted to the hospital.  It took IV antibiotics this time to get me better.  Problem with that, I was allergic to the antibiotics.  So, when I finished taking them I developed a terrible rash that lasted almost 3 weeks.

Knowing I hadn't done anything (eating wise) to bring this on, I went more gun ho on what I ate.  I became very stringent and very cautious.  I actually bought a home in the desert during this time, and started enjoying it with my hubby and my girls, until fate struck again and another flare up happened in the desert.  This time, I didn't have to go to the hospital, but I was placed on antibiotics that have simply destroyed my stomach lining.  I am now off of them, and hoping that this feeling of fatigue and nausea goes away.  

Why am I telling you all this.... I guess it's to ask myself why, when we do everything we are supposed to do in life, things just go wrong.  Is life really this difficult?

I'm going to pray it's not.  I'm going to work on keeping myself better.  But sometimes the stress and the inability to control what goes on around us is just too much to handle.

So, I leave for the desert again tomorrow.  Wish me well.  Pray that this was the final and last time I will experience this...or atleast, that I'm home and not in the desert.

It's Been a While

WOW....time has passed.  Where do I begin?  Why don't we start at the beginning.  The year 2017 was extremely difficult for me for so many reasons.  My mother's condition continued to deteriorate,  until I was forced to do what I swore I never would do, which was move her to assisted living.  I had promised my Dad, on his death bed,  that I would keep her home and care for her here; but it just got to be extremely too much.  It started in June when she tore her rotator cuff and needed around the care help.  I just couldn't provide that care at home, so I placed her in a facility two miles down the road from me.  It was a beautiful place, and were she in her right state of mind, she would have enjoyed it.  She didn't enjoy it.  She hated it all the time and simply wanted to go home.  I visited her every single day, without exception, and would stay there at least 2 hours visiting.  I would bring her her beloved Cookie (who was now living with me and who was 15 years old) every day to see him.  She just couldn't adjusted and started to get agitated much easier and had more physical problems.

By the first week of January, 2018, she developed a breathing problem, and when admitted to the hospital was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure.  While in the hospital she developed pneumonia.  She went into the hospital on January 12 and God took her home on January 18.  That's when I had to start to pick up the pieces.  Life without her would never be the same for me.  She was my tormentor, but she was my best friend, my hero, the 1/2 of the love of my life..(my father being the other 1/2) and I didn't know how to proceed without her.  But I did.

In March 2018, I realized I had much to do and packed up 48 years of memories in her and my father's house and hosted an estate sale.  My memories were going to other people and it was heart wrenching.  By July of 2018, I finally had settled my parents estate and realized it was my turn to start living and with the death of Cookie in October 2018, my last physical connection to them was gone.

Mike and I (yes we are still married and will celebrate our 20th anniversary this year) enjoyed 2019.  We traveled somewhat and we lived like a real married couple with out the obligations I always carried.  

In 2020, as we all know, the world came to a crashing halt.  COVID changed the way things were done.  Not believing in masks, I kept my self pretty much isolated at home from March until June,  when I signed up to run the RECALL NEWSOM in the City of Brea.  It was a success.

Now here we are...its 2021 and things are different again.  I finally had the emotional strength to sell my parents home (where I grew up and spent so many wonderful years), and with a portion of the funds I purchased a home in Palm Desert.  My parents loved the desert, as do I, and I felt it was an appropriate thing to do.  Mike loves it there (I dare say) more than here in our Brea home.  It's a new life.  One that I am taking one day at a time.

I would like to write here more often.  I think it brings me peace.  I will try.

Toodles,

Jeannette