Feel Like Complaining

Three days after I got home from SF, I drove to the Valley to pick up Dixie for her stay. She's the only dog I do that for because our house is out of the way whenever they travel. Her and Abe have a love, love, relationship. She loves to bark and chase if he gets too close and in turn he purposely gets too close or swats her on the butt as he flies by. Two days later I started a 23 day long once-a-day drop in for this old boy Roo (18). He mostly sleeps but eats well and is very affectionate. I usually stayed longer than the required 30 minutes just to sit with him on the couch. But then his family came home a week early and didn't tell me. I saw a car when I pulled up and went to the door. The screen door was locked so I knew someone was in the house. I started knocking and could hear noises. I almost messaged them to let them know someone was there, when she opened the door. They could have told me they were on their way or even when they got home. I had to revise the stay so...

There's this area of town called Corbin Park; which is only one of five historical districts in Spokane. It was the first fairgrounds in town, along with an oval racetrack. Now it's a park with many of the original homes around it still proudly standing. We sometimes drive there just to walk around it as it's almost a mile in distance.  I had seen a news story about one of the homes there for sale and the history within. The most recent owner's husband was an artist. He made things mostly for fun and gave a lot of this creations away to neighbors and friends. But what he did to the inside is what's amazing. He literally filled every room with his art, adhering it to the walls. After it was listed for sale it got attention of Zillow Gone Wild, which is a social media site showcasing the most unusual houses. They had an open house in March which drew a lot of attention and the house sold very quickly. An estate sale took place at the end of April and I knew I had to g...

Thursday was my last full day and of course it rained, and then rained some more. Although I was disappointed, I don't think I could have done one more thing. Every part of my body hurt and my feet were rebelling but I still wanted to get out a bit.  In the bus we had driven through Fisherman's Wharf and it was close enough to walk to. Thankfully I had brought my umbrella and off I went. There were a lot more restaurants and tourist traps. Madame Tussauds and Ripley's Believe It Or Not was there but I didn't feel like spending any more money. This was the only actual picture I took, a beautiful mosaic in a quiet courtyard. I wandered around until lunch time trying to figure out where to eat. I sat outside the Boudin Bakery Cafe and read the reviews before I went in. The cafe is downstairs and a more upscale restaurant is upstairs. I guess I felt like treating myself to a nice meal, then had buyers remorse as I left. All I ordered was a bloody mary, ceasar salad and smal...

I took an Uber to the San Francisco Botanical Garden since it was over 5 miles away. It takes up 55 acres of the Golden Gate Park. It was the best weather day and I wanted to take advantage of it. There are several areas within, each showcasing different countries or types of trees and flowers. If you were to go once a month, you would see totally different things in bloom. I had bought some lunch items at a store by the motel and had a little pick-a-nik. These trees were the most fascinating I have ever seen. They're a native of New Zealand and have these dangling aerial roots hanging from them. I tried to lift one and it was super heavy. I would tell you what I thought they looked like, but I'm sure you get it :) I was as equally impressed with the succulent garden; everything is so huge. I had taken some of Mom's ashes and figured this was a good place to put them (last pic). She would have loved it there. I got back to my room about 1:00 and had lots of time before the ...