Cats . Darkness . Music
Balkan Beat Box
On November 6, 2015 by Speranza
If you have been reading this blog regularly I apologize for the abject misery I’ve been pumping out.
I’m just starting to emerge from a funk-of-no-name, the kind of misery that makes you feel desperate but you are not sure why : there have been a few things of course, not the least of which was the sudden and shocking death of one of my young, sweet Siamese cats. Her brother has been grieving loudly and hourly since, making those dark sonorous chest yowls usually associated with Tibetan monks. It’s a chilling heart-breaking sound and cannot be stopped with food or entreaties from those around him.
I will write about The Willow Cat in a later post but for now, it’s still too fresh.
Anyway how to pull out of a funk when one wakes up with tears in one’s eyes wondering how to get through the day?
No quick answers here but a visit to my past and recalling which (small) things have cheered me before is always helpful and a good starting point.
Childhood . My Fiction . Writing
Hounds-Tooth
On November 1, 2015 by Speranza
A tiny slit of light creaks through the ill-fitting wardrobe door even after it clicks shut behind me. Under different circumstances to these I might feel self conscious, or perhaps unbalanced. But the pain of loss has driven me here, and I care nothing for such thoughts. The coat hangers move quickly under my touch whining the screech of steel on steel, till at last I find what I want. It slips around my shoulders easily, enveloping me in its scent and at once I breathe in a thousand memories. The smell of spearmint gum still lingers in the pocket, and the faint tang of old-fashioned shaving soap comes up to me from the warmth. This coat is a traditional hounds’ tooth tweed, but worn soft and the lining still glows cheerfully, a dull vermilion red like the inside of a magicians’ cloak.
Uncategorized
October
On October 13, 2015 by Speranza Bending above the spicy woods which blaze, Arch skies so blue they flash, and hold the sun Immeasurably far; the waters run Too slow, so freighted are the river-ways With gold of elms and birches from the maze Of forests. Chestnuts, clicking one by one, Escape from satin burs; her fringes done, The gentian spreads
Top Ten Lists
Top Ten Bits of Random Wisdom
On October 4, 2015 by Speranza
10. Did you know that those egg slicers with the tight little wires across are the perfect thing for slicing strawberries – so quick and efficient and the perfect distraction for someone small or a slightly drunken dinner guest who wants to “help” with dessert … Credit to Frasier for bringing this to my attention!
9. If you are about to discard an expensive tube of hand cream/anchovy paste/anything that comes in a PLASTIC tube think again! Cutting the end off with scissors – literally takes a second – can give you quite a few more uses.
8. I realized this summer that slices of lime and lemon freeze brilliantly! No more hardened ends in the fridge, just slice them up all at once, toss into a ziplock bag and you have an ice cube AND a zip of citrus for future gin and tonics or …er … sparkling water.
7. There is probably no one alive today who does not know this but just in case, the best way to rid the kitchen of fruit flies is by putting Cider vinegar – and it must be cider vinegar – in a saucer, stretching plastic wrap across the top and then making a few holes with a fork. Sad, but I believe they do go happy.
6. If you have a dog/cat you will at some point have to deal with evil, rage-inducing clean-up issues and I am not talking about fur. I therefore suggest bookmarking the instructions listed here from the nice people at Cats of Australia because they actually WORK! http://www.catsofaustralia.com/urinestainremoval.htm
Poetry