Snatches

Straightening up her office would be a lot easier if, ever since she was in grade school, Fiorella hadn't garabbed a pen and started writing every chance she got.
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Fio celebrated Daughter's birthday by hauling a couple of big limbs and some nice kindling up from the dry creek today. And believe me, in this weather, that creek is definitely dry.
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Doggie has been whining around for her Daddy, who is still in the hospital. Fio misses him too.
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Minnesota Son is looking around for a newish cell phone for Fiorella. Her old one has problems taking photos and moving them onto FaceBook.
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Did Fio tell you she's currently revisiting the joy that is Linda Howard?

Ellen

Today is Ellen's birthday, and Fiorella wishes her well. But it's not just Ellen that she celebrates--it's Ellen's family too. Eve and Norman Paule influenced and enlarged Fio's life. They were the ones who had a Time-Life art series she absorbed like a  felt blotter, who took her along with Ellen to live performances of music and drama, who included her in rides to swimming and sewing lessons, who introduced her to Yiddish, who, by the sort of people they were, taught her to respect and honor Judaism.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ELLEN. THANK YOU.

Covering the Waterfront

How would Fiorella ever manage without push pins, Scotch tape, and twisties?
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Doug Jones won in Alabama (thank you, God), which shows the nation and the world what Trump's endorsement is worth.
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Yesterday was Austin son's birthday, and Fio couldn't help but remember his actual birth day. It was fraught. He was two weeks late and so big that Fio had to have a C-section, which was no fun, but Fio was thrilled.
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The temps have been low enough the past few days that Fio has been wrapping herself in her twenty-year-old winter robe when she gets up every morning. It's a saturnalia miracle--her robe is in mint condition because most years there's no need for it.
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Fio's got to think of some clever way to fill the front porch urns now that the freeze (yes, a real live FREEZE) has killed the lavenders. Maybe a quick trip to Dollar Store or Hobby Lobby would give her an idea.

Mother at 104

Today, on what would have been her mother's 104th birthday, Fiorella will be cremating her artifacts, the leftovers from her life that Fio and her brother have been storing for the past fifteen years. Anything anyone in the family wanted or could use has been doled out years ago, but the personal stuff remains. Over the summer, Fio went through these remnants carefully, saving anything that struck a chord with her--like photos, Mother's report cards, various diplomas and commendations--all of which were packed neatly in a large manila envelope for future generations to appreciate. But so many of the items that were apparently dear to Mother--like those two decorative candy boxes, her college notes, and what Fio suspects were her wedding shoes--had to go. But go where? Fio refused to toss any of her mother's treasures into the trash.

The solution came to her a couple of weeks ago, like a whispered message, and today she and Husband, who also loved her, will burn the remains of Mother's life in their fireplace, and the smoke will rise to the heavens.

Busy Bee

Fiorella and Husband had a wonderful afternoon in Austin with Brother and his wife, first at a very nice restaurant, and then at a clever performance of 17th century art songs.   Not only did Fio enjoy a tasty salmon dinner, but she also got a free dessert because it was her three-month belated birthday celebration. Next came the Early Music Project, hosted by the First Presbyterian Church. Of course, Fio and Brother, who took voice lessons many years ago and had actually sung some of the songs, were in their element.
Fio's singing voice is gone now, but it's all for the best. She's got too many irons in the fire as it is. One of those fires is putting up her Halloween decorations--wrapping the plastic skeleton around the mailbox, arranging her cardboard bats on the window, and sticking paper pumpkins around and about. And, of course, she needs to start on the fifth revision of Phillipa's story, clear the fallen branches and rotten limbs out of the south woods, and plow ahead on Spanish.
Too bad she has so much spare time.

Fiorella in Three

Fiorella, a let's-face-reality kinda gal, does not understand people who aren't, the ones who prefer fiction, who cling to anger and revel in lies. How can anyone still support Trump? Don't they see by now that the emperor has no clothes? And even worse, that he doesn't know he has no clothes, that he's living in his own self-delusional world?
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Fiorella is still reveling in the birthday greetings she received yesterday. Birthdays are important to Fio, and she celebrates not only family birthdays, but the birthdays of her friends as well. It's her way of saying she's glad they're stilll walking this earth with her.
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Fiorella is a dog servant. When Sonia wants out, Fio opens the door. When Sonia lets herself in, Fio closes the door. She dishes out Sonia's kibbles, refills her water bowl as needed, and periodically washes the vinyl dog tray Sonia's bowls rest on. Then there's the required morning pet, which must include clucking and a body massage, and then there's the  required distribution of rawhide bones throughout the day. Yup, Fiorella is dog tired.

Here and There

The older Fio gets, the more she likes clouds. Hope that means she's headed to heaven someday.
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 Ah, a new month, a new chance. And this month has Fio's birthday in it, which gives her a double chance.
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Fio's book is jolting along, and what drives it is some advice Fio's literary agent, Liza Dawson, gave her four years ago: every scene must move the story forward. (To which Fiorella adds what Tracy Wolff once said at an RWA meeting: let the POV be from the viewpoint of the person who has the most to lose.)
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Fio's getting closer and closer to signing up for an on-line Spanish class. She just can't stand not knowing what the characters on the telenovelas are talking  about.
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Speaking of telenovelas, Minnesota Son said most of the guns the characters on La Piloto were toting were berrettas. Apparently there is not much diversity in the television gun wardrobe closet.

Tidbits a la Mode

Happy birthday to Sonia dog!  She is five wonderful years old today, and Fio loves her more than ever.
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Fiorella's prediction of two more Trump biggies before the election has come half-true, but Fio's timing was off.  Instead of it coming before the third debate, it came at the end of it, and el hombre malo provided it by calling Clinton a "nasty woman" like a second-grader saying all girls have cooties. Now let's see if there's another reveal between now and November 7.
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When Fio opened her front door and picked up the newspaper this morning, she noticed there were a few dead leaves on it and the porch.  Aaah--fall is here at last.

Happiness Is a Happy Family

Minnesota son, who is visiting to help Fio and Husband in the aftermath of Husband's hospital stays, celebrated his belated birthday yesterday. In the afternoon, he drove into Austin for a get-together with Brother and Sister, and, in the evening, Brother came to the house and was joined by Cousin and Wife. There were a lot of stories and a lot of laughter, which warmed Fio's heart.  She slept well last night.

Living Dangerously but Eating Well

Happy birthday to Fio--again.  Later today, her brother and sister-in-law are taking her and Husband out to Frisco, one of Fiorella's favorite restaurants. It's an old-time Austin thing, a family tradition. Not only did Husband's parents know the original owner, but Husband and Fiorella took their kids there regularly when they were growing up. The hamburger steaks are the best, and the chocolate ice box pie is out of this world. Fio will probably end up with a late-night GERD attack, but it will be worth it.

Fio On the Loose

Husband gave Fio exactly what she wanted for her birthday--a small, lightweight sewing machine, which is a thing of wonder and delight. Now she can make pillows for the futon in her "office," and sew up whatever else takes her fancy.  Yep, your Fiorella has yet another creative outlet.

Fourth x Three

In order to keep Austin son and daughter from having to trek out to Georgetown three times in one month, Fio and Husband proposed combining their BDs--his in late June and hers in mid-July--with the family Fourth of July celebration. Son, of course, brought his lovely wife with him, and Daughter brought her BF.  There was joy and laughter and a card and a gift and far too much good food. The hit of the show was Daughter's BF, who cooked the hamburgers to a chef's perfection. If he will attend, Fio will try to sneak in a second celebration when her real BD rolls around.
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Fiorella did it again--came up with a clever, cheap, last-minute holiday decoration.  And all it took was a pair of scissors, Scotch tape, and colored paper, which Fio has mounds of.  First she cut a couple of pages of red paper and blue paper into strips about an inch wide. Then she cut a three pages of white paper into strips.  Next she taped the strips into a kindergarten chain--red-white-blue-white etc. Then she drooped the chain across the fireplace, draping the sides and taping the center of the chain upward to the middle of the mantel. Topping the upward center was a fan-type cockade she made by taping three leftover strips together horizontally. Took about twenty minutes in all.
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Daughter gave Fio a DVD of My Big Fat Greek Wedding2 for Fourth of July/Fio's birthday so Husband ran it for her yesterday evening.  It's Fio's kind of movie--sweet, sentimental, and funny. She laughed and cried and made mewing noises at the happy ending. Try it--you'll like it.

Husband and Mother

Yes, always-innovative Fiorella has done it again.  To celebrate Husband's birthday, she cut two copies of P-A-R-T-Y out of her remaining stash of gold foil from Russell Stover, taped them to the bottom of the mantel, then taped a BD card between them.

The girl can't help it.  Her mother was like that too, although not as daring as Fio.  Whatever needed to be done, Mother figured out a way to do it, and she had an artistic eye too.  She made most of Fiorella's clothes, and Fio fondly remembers the Christmas dress embroidered around the neck and arms with red and green yarn.

Fio has long suspected that her mother had the same creative gene in her that Fio does, but it got smushed along the way, which made Mother determined that Fio have the opportunities she'd missed. Thus Baylor Children's Theater, oil painting classes, piano lessons--whatever Fio took an interest in.

Bless the memory of Mother.

Happy Birthday, Son

Austin Son had another birthday yesterday.  Fio is happy to celebrate with him, but she really doesn't like him adding another year.  Fiorella's car is more than ten years old, her Christmas tree is more then ten years old, and she herself is more than ten years old, but she would like Son to stay steady.

Com'on, kid, hold your ground.

Aaron and Vienna

Fio's Austin offspring were not at Brother Bill's birthday/Thanksgiving celebration, and here's the reason why: THEY WERE ATTENDING NEPHEW AARON'S WEDDING IN HONG KONG! The bride is the lovely Vienna Wong.  Fio and Husband met Vienna's parents and sister at Christmas a couple of years ago, as you may remember.

Aaron is the last man standing of the cousins, the last to get married, and Fio wishes all the best for him and Vienna.

HB, Sonia!

Happy birthday, Sonia Dog!

Yes, baby dog is four years old today--twenty-eight in human years--and she's settled down into a lovely young lady.  Chasing after the deer doesn't interest her as much these days, and she can be trusted outside the house without a leash.  In fact, if we leave the back gate open, she just circles around to the front porch and lies down on the welcome mat until someone lets her in.

But she's still wary of visitors until Husband and I indicate all is well.  We take care of her and she takes care of us.

Party House

Preparing for Daughter's late birthday party, Fiorella rushed around the house like a mad woman,  trying to make her house look as much as possible like her mother's house.  She failed, of course.  No one could match her mother for housekeeping.  The vacuum cleaner was Mother's weapon of choice, and Better Homes and Garden was her guide while Fio couldn't remember how to work her vacuum and hasn't read a magazine in years

But Daughter seemed happy about her party as it was so all is well in Casa Fiorella.

Stressed, You Say?

This has been a hard week for Fiorella,  That engine light was still on so Fio had to take the car to the dealer for a $400 repair, she was diagnosed with GERD (good-bye, chocolate), attacked by a herd of mosquitoes, hit the concrete face-first again, is still recovering from having her false vocal chords shot up with botox, is agonizing over revisions of her new book, and is preparing not only for the NY writers' conference, but for her birthday,

The good thing is that she's lost two pounds.

Dance and Sing

Dance and sing, clap your hands, leap for joy!  Fiorella's revisions are few and far between!  Yes, she has received the critique of WHERE THE HEART LEADS from her editor, and whole clumps of pages go by without a single red mark!

Now to tackle those pages that do have red marks on them.  And to consult the critiques her beta readers turned in.  And to finish writing COMFORT OF THE HEART, or whatever she's going to name the novella.  And to celebrate Father's Day and Husband's birthday.  And to clean up the house.  And to go through all the old photos and label them.  And to repair some old oil paintings,  And to get those little booklets made up for the NRWA conference.  And to revise and publish her short stories and her poetry,

Somehow, your Fiorella will work it all into her schedule.

HAPPY BD, SON!

Today is Minnesota Son's birthday, and, for the first time in years, Husband and Fio will be able to celebrate it with him.  Yes, Son and his lovely wife are in Texas right now.

The nuclear family got together last Sunday for a pre-birthday celebration at Longhorn Steakhouse in Georgetown.  Then yesterday, Son and his wife, Fio and Husband met with part of the extended family at Frisco in Austin.  And today Fio and Husband will again have most of the nuclear family together, this time for cake and ice cream.

Yeah, birthdays are a big deal in Fiorella's world.