I went to the school board website to fill in an application as a school volunteer. I’m not great at filling out things on the computer, but with a bit of help,I got it done last week. I would have to pay thirty-five dollars for a set of fingerprints and be charged eight dollars a year for the prints to stay on file.
Photo credit Pixabay
Bill drove me to the County School Board building in another town, but before we went, we had lunch at Chick-Fi-l A with our daughter. I love that place. It’s feels like a giant family reunion. We mingle with military people, sports team people, and lots of mothers and a few dads with babies and pre-school children. Children are God’s best work of art. I have to be careful that I don’t just sit and gaze at them.
photo credit Melody Hendrix
I’ve always liked children, that’s the main reason I want to help with reading again. Over the last year,I’ve been a bit slow as I recuperated from an emergency gall-bladder operation. While I was getting back my strength, I felt as if I had no real purpose in life, so as I got well I prayed for God to use me in some way that He knew I could manage.
Since it was around lunchtime when we got to the School Board the tiny security room in the large building was standing room only. Eventually,it was my turn to go in. I had a pink sheet that asked if I had ever been arrested. They wanted to know what, where, when, why, and how. There were strict instructions against lying.
Thank the Lord, I have never been arrested…uh, well but… when I was in high school, I got hauled into the police station for drag-racing at night on our main street. I kind of hated to quit, because I had always won. Maybe I won because of the Green Hornet Hudson my dad let me drive. The other driver, the Lutheran pastor’s son got taken in too. Apparently the police liked him, though. They let us go without calling our parents. I didn’t know until later that Dad had replaced a transmission on the Green Hudson Hornet. Let’s not tell the School Board any of this, okay?
Photo credit commons WikiMedia.org
Back to the fingerprints, which aren’t nearly as exciting as drag racing. (Kids don’t try it at home). The fingerprint space had two big desks in it which meant four people filled the room. Did you know that fingerprinting is now done on a computer? The old way was probably better, but at least I didn’t have ink on my hands. Words come up for each print at the top of the monitor. Mine always said, “Poor Quality.” I figured I had worn off most of my prints like the woman I heard saying hers had been rejected because she was a cook and they had mostly burnt off. Next,I will get an email notice of whether I passed or not.
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
On my way home after singing practice one day, I stopped at the bank. While I waited in my car for the transaction to be completed, I was looking down the street toward a school I was familiar with. I once took that very street every Tuesday afternoon to pick up a little girl who was in my Sunday School class. I’d take her to my house and help with her homework then take her home. That was several years ago, but from what I hear, she’s been on the honor roll ever since we worked together. She was a member of my 90% black Sunday school class at the time I was helping her. Believe it or not, growing up in a tiny town in Colorado I had never seen a single black person before (except on Tarzan movies, which I loved).
In the bank drive-through, I got to thinking about the days with my little friends and how I missed them. I’d been praying that God would give me a job I could do, and now I wondered if I might help at the school in some way. The thought came to me: you’re out of the house, now, might as well drive over to the school and see what’s happening.Maybe the small still voice of the Lord was showing me the way. I finished my banking and headed out. In a couple of minutes,I came to traffic guides bustling around with cones and barriers and yellow buses caravanning in.School was letting out and traffic would be fierce for about fifteen minutes. I parked and dashed into the office where I waited for the moms and dads to be taken care of. Soon a motherly woman behind the counter turned to me. I told her I was interested in volunteering, and she asked for my phone number to give the volunteer coordinator. I was a bit disappointed because I didn’t know if I’d really get a call or not. But I discovered that just being in the school office with the children and their parents had made me feel at home and happy. Still, though, I wanted to be as sure as possible that God wanted me involved.
When I got home I checked my email and FaceBook and suddenly there before me was the last piece of the puzzle. A friend had posted a notice about a volunteer orientation at the school the following Friday. I immediately made plans to attend. I was on my way now, and I was glad.
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
I’ve been a bit low, lately. I need to find a way to be useful and I want to enjoy it. I’ve been praying for the Lord to show me what to do with myself. I’ve tried a few things, but for various reasons, they don’t feel quite right.
I toyed with the idea of working at a school again. Although I never finished college, I’ve been a teacher most of my life. When I was twelve our sixteen-year-old Sunday School teacher got polio and had to quit teaching. Because no one else could do it, I was asked to take over the class of four children in my own age range. One was my brother, two were the children that lived in the other side of the duplex we lived in and the fourth was the younger sister of our sixteen year old teacher. The former teacher was at a school reunion not many years ago and I was glad to see she had survived her disease. As for me, I’ve been teaching in schools and Sunday Schools ever since. I do love the concept of being sin-free because my Savior died for me and I like to study and share about Him too.
Here in Florida when our grandchildren were growing up I was their art teacher during home-school days. They spent one weekend a month at our house and we had wonderful times together. When I started teaching a mixed class of beautiful black children with a few white ones to enjoy too, the teen-aged grandchildren (by that time) helped their granddad and I with the class when they came to stay. That particular class lasted for ten years with essentially the same children. When the church closed down I was out of a job. Our grandchildren are grown now and on their own, and I’ve missed being around young children.
Before I taught my last Sunday School class I worked one morning a week listening to one child at a time work on their reading. They were of all ages. I’ve loved finding ways to help them recall what they were learning. The rehab reading teacher who was in my “young married” Sunday School class took me to an awards program after I’d been helping for two years. It turned out that I was one of the people they called to the stage when they gave out awards.
I’d only been doing what came naturally so I was astounded. My daughter suggested I wear it when I went to the school to apply as a volunteer this time. I didn’t know if I’d have the nerve to do that, but the fact of having is was deeply comforting. It was an atta girl, and a you can do it all in one. I’d just have to figure out what the next step was.
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
Thea’s Millet
We looked on YouTubeto try and figure out the best way to cut Thea’s claws. My neighbor later told me she has never cut any cat’s claws, but the word is that they can grow back into the paws, so I’ve always cut them.
The best video I found on the subject was a vet who shows how to squish the cat and cut her nails. We put a towel over her and Bill pressed down so she couldn’t move and I cut the claws. It worked well, except that I had planned to add treats to her ordeal so it wouldn’t be so scary for her. The Vet said not to worry about hurting the cat so we didn’t…worry or hurt.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVAmlSGH-MM
I guess Thea gets a bit anxious to be allowed into the kitchen in the morning. She has been not scratching on the door itself, but on the edge of the carpet that covers the step into the kitchen. This is the third time we’ve tried to keep her from doing it, but it’s not working so far.
She isn’t being mean or bad and neither are we. She’s just being a cat and we’re only human. We went to the big store today and walked around looking for ideas to keep her from ruining the step.
Something clicked in Bill’s mind and he came up with the solution. He got aluminum strips that you use on a roof overhang and cut and fit them to the step. We put up alerts, plus we have handles, put in by “Aging Matters,” to help us remain safe. Kitty hasn’t tried anything more, she’s a fast learner.
Thanks for your attention and your comments throughout our adventure with the lovely Thea. You may hear from her again someday. Until then, here’s the dear creature sitting for a silly picture to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Next week’s blog will be about my return to second-grade. See you then
Meow.
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
This morning, Thea and I went out to the porch while it was still dark. I turned on a couple of lights, but we couldn’t see out. We heard a heavy rustling and I hurried in the house to get a flashlight. No animal makes a clatter like an armadillo and sure enough, the flashlight reveals the small, armored creaturemaking its way through some dead leaves along the side fence. Thea was beside herself with excitement and jumped up on the shelf to follow watch the action. The only thing that was between them was the screen.
Armadillos are not native to Florida, and they have few natural enemies, (dogs and probably cougars which are endangered). The small mammals can dig under almost any fence. Their armor is like incredibly thick tough skin. Stories abound about how they got to Florida. My favorite, but most unlikely is a mid-night escape from a de-railed circus train. They may have been here and multiplying for about 66 years.
I just looked up where they came from and didn’t find anything about that, but to my horror and dismay I just found this:
“Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease, is caused by the Mycobacterium leprae bacteria. The bacteria can be transmitted through fluids from the nose and mouth. (Some animal experts have warned the public this week that armadillos spit, and that, if you see one of these creatures, it’s best to keep a distance.)”
There’s another good reason for having an indoor cat. And it’s a reason to stay away from armadillos and try our best to keep them out of the yard.
Except for certain diseases and dangerous animals, Florida is a fine place to live. Richer folks have homes here and also homes in the frozen north where they go to escape our summer heat. We call them snow-birds. They take that well. Most of us came during the early days of the Space Race. We’ve been here fifty years and have no plans to leave until we head out for heaven.
Thea enjoyed watching the armadillo in the light of the flashlight.The creature went around the yard looking for the squeeze-through place or self-made tunnel where it came in under the fence. This particular one has dug three holes in our yard.
So onward and upward. After being on alert for hours over the armadillo, the lizards, the squirrels, and the birds, Thea conked out on my bed. In the daytime, she sleeps so soundly and in such odd postures that yesterday I had to wake her up to see if she was breathing. I don’t think she gets bored, except maybe at night when she’s in the studio by herself shredding paper. Funny thing: she sliced open the Pine/Cedar bag of litter with her claws. Must get them cut! I know pine and cedar smells nice, but I’m sure she was disappointed that it wasn’t a giant bag of treats.
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
When we adopted Thea, we got an invitation for a free visit at the SPCA Wellness Center if we got there within a month. I didn’t want to pass that up, so I wrote it on my calendar. It has almost been a month since she came to live with us. Oh, my how time doth fly!
I sprayed an old towel for her carrier with something that’s supposed to make cats feel peaceful. All was well, no resistance, no meowing.
Thea weighsseven pounds, which really isn’t a lot, but when I added my purse to her weight and the carrier’s, it was all I could do to lug her to the car. When we arrived, I went into the wrong office, and the only reason I got in there was because a very nice man jumped up and opened the door for me. He had a tuxedo cat too and we had just settled in for a conversation about our pets when the associate came to tell me we belonged in the next building over. She took Thea’s carriage while I drove my car over there.
In the examining room, I let Thea out onto the steel table then kept my hands busy all over her silken fur to keep her from jumping down. Finally, the assistant came in and said I could let her explore. Thea did that then while we waited she got under my chair and relaxed. She usually wants to be where either Bill or I am, plus, I was playing soft music on my phone.
There wasn’t much to the exam. The vet asked if she coughed or threw up or had diarrhea. No, no, no. They asked how well she ate and drank and eliminated. I had a question as to whether she was getting enough water or not and the vet assured me that she wasn’t dehydrated. I decided to just give her wet food and keep making a sauce out of it with water.
When we finished with the young woman vet, an even younger assistant carried Thea to the car. This time Thea fought being crated, but I think she was afraid she was going somewhere besides home with me.
I appreciated the free visit and the assurance that Thea was doing well. The SPCA is a group I would definitely deal with again, and I will probably take Thea there whenever we need a vet. After reading all the symptoms of allergies to vaccinations, pills, and shots of which there are many I told the assistant that Thea stays either on the screened-in porch or in the house at all times and that I would like to avoid using any more pharmaceuticals if possible. She wrote something down, so perhaps she took me seriously.
Home time and a thorough bath.
I’m not sure she will like this picture of herself. Lately, she has been gazing into the door mirrors in the hall, so she does know how beautiful she is and might be embarrassed by this picture. An interesting tidbit: I read that animals that are able to see themselves in mirrors are the best show animals. I’ve only had a couple who could.
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
One of the first things Thea did when we got her home was to scratch on the upholstered leg of the couch. We’ve had it a long time, and it already had some claw pulls, but I didn’t want it to get any worse, so I taped foil to the leg and then got some new scratching pads from Petco.
Since we got her, she has learned to scratch on two pads, one in the family room, and one in the studio near her cat tree. Each time she does what she’s supposed to, she gets one small treat. Sometimes she will try to get another by scratching a bit more, but we don’t encourage such shenanigans.
Sometimes I’m concerned about whether she’s happy with us. Do we spend enough time petting and talking to her, does she like her food, is she getting enough water, as an indoor cat is she bored and lonely?
I’m using the internet to get ideas for training her. There are so many schools of thought, but I read and think and experiment withthings like scratching and even shredding. We use a single Greenie to reward Thea for scratching on the pads rather than on the carpets or furniture. At first,I had to catch her pulling at the carpet, then I would pick her up and carry her to the pad. She didn’t get the idea, so I got down and scratched on it myself. I didn’t get any treats, but it kept my fingernails nice and smooth until she learned how to do it too. The thing that is so interesting about cats and probably dogs, too, is that they understand things they see their humans or other animals doing something and they understand exactly what we’re getting at. I don’t need to give her a treat every time now because using the scratching pads has become a habit. By the way, Greenies are good for keeping cat’s teeth clean so that in future years we hopefully won’t have to take her to the vet to have them cleaned. After her evening meal, I hide five Greenies in the folds of her red, plush blanket and after she finds them all she lovingly kneads the cover to show her delight.
One night I let her sleep on my bed. She lay quiet and polite at the foot of the bed until 4:30 A. M. when she got up, stretched out on my chest, and rubbed my face with her chin with such sweet-droolykisses I had to change my night-gown. After that, I relocated her to the studio and closed the door. The next morning I saw that she had dragged a brown paper bag out of the recycle bin and started the shredding process. We decided it wasn’t revenge, but a good way to take out her tensions and amuse herself. Bill has become the official provider of brown paper bags. Now when the grocery store checker in her green uniform says, “paper or plastic,” we say paper. So far Bill is cleaning the shreds of the studio floor and putting down fresh bags as needed.
Every night Thea and I play the mouse game as she leaps to catch a flying mouse on the end of a wire or ribbon. We have two. We alternate them every night so we don’t get bored. I wish you could see her cat ballet.
Our Jasmine has been gone about six weeks. Her water dish sits on the counter in the bathroom waiting for her. I tell myself it’s just a pretty dish, and it matches my drinking water glass. But the truth is it brings back pleasant memories.
Thea, Bill, and I, however, are forming our own routines and we three continue to learn to love and trust each other in new ways. We are working on some kind of protocol to cut her nails. If they don’t get cut they can keep growing until they circle around and grow back into her paws. She is what I hear animal-people calling, a sweetheart.Under Thea’s ministrations the sadness about Jasmine’s departure grows softer every day.
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
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Thanks for your attention and your comments throughout our adventure with the lovely Thea. You may hear from her again someday. Until then, here’s the dear creature sitting for a silly picture to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Next week’s blog will be about my return to second-grade. See you then
DiVoran has been writing for most of her life. Her first attempt at a story was when she was seven years old and her mother got a new typewriter. DiVoran got to use it and when her dad saw her writing he asked what she was writing about. DiVoran answered that she was writing the story of her life. Her dad’s only comment was, “Well, it’s going to be a very short story.” After most of a lifetime of writing and helping other writers, DiVoran finally launched her own dream which was to write a novel of her own. She now has her Florida Springs trilogy and her novel, a Christian Western Romance, Go West available on Amazon. When speaking about her road to publication, she gives thanks to the Lord for all the people who helped her grow and learn. She says, “I could never have done it by myself, but when I got going everything fell beautifully into place, and I was glad I had started on my dream.”
Old Things R New 