1. Copper definitely travels to the beat of a different drum. I've managed to help him be less restless during the night by putting more wet food in his bowl when we go to bed, but even with that, he'll insist I get up, say at 3 a.m., and add more wet food to his dish.
I comply.
He's very insistent.
Then every morning about 5:30 or so, Copper starts prowling and howling around the bedroom.
A few mornings ago, I figured out what Copper wants.
He wants me to get out!
Ha!
The same Copper who is a purring ball of contentment when I join him on the bed during the day is, in the early morning, like a strict landlord who hasn't been paid rent and he kicks me out, evicts me.
Ha!
So, Saturday morning, I was up at 5:00 because I wanted to hydrate and have some food before beginning to fast at 6:00 (doctor's orders because of a possible transplant that day).
After the transplant surgery didn't happen, I went to bed around 10:00. I was bushed. I'd been awake for about seventeen hours.
And wouldn't you know it: at about 5:45 on Sunday morning, Copper began to howl and pace.
He was kicking me out!
I complied.
Later in the day, around 3:00, I joined Copper and took a coma nap. He moved in close to me. He purred deeply, totally contented, and fell into a deep sleep himself.
He wanted me with him at 3:00, but wants the bedroom to himself at around 6 a.m.
It's weird.
Copper is definitely a funny cat, and, for whatever reason, he's been especially eccentric since Luna died in December.
I surrender to his eccentricity.
I submit to his wishes.
Happily.
2. At noon, the University of Iowa and the Univ of South Carolina played for the women't NCAA basketball championship.
To their everlasting credit, the underdog Iowa Hawkeyes started the game scorching the twine and jumped to an early lead.
I thought to myself (and I wanted to be wrong!), there's no way Iowa can maintain this pace and this high of a shooting percentage.
Indeed, they cooled off a bit and the stronger, longer, deeper Gamecocks steadily asserted their superiority, scoring from in the paint and beyond the three point line and on midrange jumpers and steadily taking control of missed shots on both ends of the floor.
I thought Iowa was having to work much harder for their points than USC. I knew Iowa's bench was thin and USC's was deep and I figured, in time, USC would wear down Iowa.
And they did.
USC is simply a great basketball team -- they are balanced, they share the sugar, they are disciplined on both defense and offense, and they play with joy and toughness.
I put down a sentimental wager of 20 bucks on the Hawkeyes in early March, hoping that Iowa's transcendent guard, Caitlin Clark, could crown her stellar college career with an NCAA championship.
That didn't happen.
South Carolina finished the season undefeated and proved themselves to be the nation's best team.
3. We had a rousing family dinner tonight featuring robust serious conversation, a very good measure of hardy laughter, and comforting food and drink.
We started with a Red Snapper cocktail. It's a gin Bloody Mary. Christy makes a superb Bloody Mary mix and this drink was awesome. We sat at the dining table, covered with the world map tablecloth Debbie recently purchased, and enjoyed Debbie's ground beef enchilada casserole and Paul's salad, a combination of lettuce, vegetables, feta cheese, and apple slices. This dinner came with tortilla chips and guacamole and salsa and Molly brought a container of cinnamon and sugar tortilla chips for dessert.
As expected, much of our discussion over cocktails focused on what we referred to as "Bill's kidney week". Debbie and I talked about what we learned. We discussed what we would like to see happen moving forward, especially when everything aligns and I have the surgery. We discussed the anxiety and emotions of the week and I tried to explain how and why I felt calm, why I didn't experience the week as a roller coaster ride.
We talked about more than kidney week (thank goodness!). Carol and Paul wrapped up their stint as artists in residence at Canyon Elementary School with a successful show at the Sixth Street Melodrama's theater in Wallace. Debbie told us about challenges she's facing in her work at Pinehurst Elementary. Later on, Christy told Debbie and me about the joyous experience she and Carol had at the First Interstate Center for the Arts in Spokane watching a matinee performance of My Fair Lady on Saturday.
We also learned this evening that Christy and Carol were both enthused about their post-performance dinner at Indigenous Eats, a Native owned restaurant serving, in the restaurant's words, contemporary Native American comfort food.
The restaurant has two Spokane locations: Christy and Carol dined in the Gonzaga District at 829 E. Boone Ave. #E. The other location is downtown on the third floor of the Riverfront Square Mall.
No comments:
Post a Comment