There is a lot of change happening very quickly around here. It takes a lot to adjust to having new furry friends, both of whom have their own challenges. The new cat has a congenital defect in her right eye, that affects how well she can open and contract the pupil, but apparently doesn't hurt her depth perception one bit. She likes to jump up and investigate every elevated surface in the house, from the top of my towel cabinet in the bathroom, to the top of my art pantry, where I had a big box of paints and a plant just begging to be thrown to the ground by a nosy little calico. I need to move the breakables I put up high everywhere to keep them "safe" from ground dwellers, and it might be wise to move the heavy metal shingle from my grandfather's old dental office from the top of the fridge to a place where it can't be tipped to the ground for the entertainment of a cat.
Customizing the house for the dog is a bit more labor intensive, and the costs are higher. We decided to pull up the nicer, more decorative rugs and put down some cheap replacements from the discount store. The dog-in-a-pony-cart needs some sort of rug to gain traction when he's not in his wheels (he sort of hops around, much like yogic flying, bouncing on his rear end). But while he has a little bit of control over bodily functions, it's limited, and there is only so much Nature's Miracle can do on a nice rug. We took a trip to Lowe's as well, to get a sprayer attachment for the shower. The man has to give this little doggie a bath almost every night, and a big plastic rinse cup just wasn't cutting it. Next big project needs to be a ramp leading off of the deck. We haven't drawn up plans yet, but they can't be far away.
I'm learning just what a difference manly upper body strength makes. The same amount of pruning and clearing that would have taken me all day and a thousand mosquito bites took the man about forty-five minutes before we headed off to Lowe's. What's more, he not only cleared out all the suckers from the base of the crape myrtles and Bradford pear stump, he also took out big, two-inch thick branches off of several trees, like it was nothing. I can't say I'm not jealous. I would have been laid out on the couch for hours, griping about how much my forearms hurt. He also is a lot braver when it comes to looking at a tree and deciding where to cut. I pull my punches too much when it comes to pruning.
It's finally starting to look like autumn in the Park. I have a few trees turning colors, the neighbor's oak is starting to fill up my driveway with leaves, and the angle of light is moving significantly. It's not quite as showy as fall in Colorado or up in New England, but it's what I've got. I'll do autumn my way.
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