View of El Parque

This is a view from Fiorella's garage out to the driveway, the one she and her friends lined with rocks. Fio is grateful for the privilege of living in such a beautiful environment, tries to take good care of it, and strives to be worthy of it.

Boo!

Trick or treat, but beware of the dog!  Fiorella went out early in the morning, barefoot and in her robe, and took a picture of her Halloween door, not realizing she'd be reflected in it, pumpkin head and all. 

F

Yesterday's News

Fiorella had her eyelids lifted yesterday and already she can see so much better. Turns out those shadows that had been getting in her way were her eyelashes. Wish her happy healing!

Up, Up, and Away!

Hold on tight because Fio is on an upswing, probably because of friend Pat's good vibes.  She practiced piano yesterday, finished off all the income tax tallies, concocted a stand-up cone that now holds up a photo for her renovated shelves, left messages for all the people she was supposed to contact, and attended a neighborhood meeting.  Then--wonder of wonders, she integrated the critiques into her novella.

And today she'll (gulp) go through the Allstate information and consider her options.

Yard at the Crossoads

This is the part of the yard where the two driveways meet and go up to the house. Fiorella thinks it is beautiful.

She went outside and took a lot of photos today, both to make sure she remembered how to transport  them out of her cell phone into her blog and to make memories for when she and Husband ultimately downsize and move on.

THE FIREWOOD ACROSS THE DRIVEWAY

Fiorella put this photo on the blog ALL BY HERSELF!  

It shows the firewood across the driveway that she and Husband are storing up for winter, and it's all from their own land.  Unfortunately, due to the continual drought, there are still a couple more dead trees to go. 

And no, she doesn't know why her blog is centering itself but it probably has something to do with writing above the centered photo.  Next time, she'll write first, then insert the photo.

Good Tidings!

Fiorella may have had a a rough time going to sleep last night, but she woke up feeling G-R-R-R-E-A-T!

Reviewing her yesterday,  Fio and Husband finalized the refinancing of la casa, she managed (with the help of Husband and Minnesota Son) to put another picture on Facebook, heard from a high school friend she has been trying to get in touch with for a while, and tore into a rewrite of her novella.

Then, this morning, she read several heartening stories in the newspaper--like that xenophobic Germany will accept 500,000 refugees a year, the Pope is easing  the process for annulments, and almost 10,000,000 people have health insurance now (through Obamacare),

Afterwards, she checked her calendar and learned that today she has brunch with Friend Evelyn and lunch with Friend Paula.

Ah--life is good in FiorellaLand.

House of Origin

Happy birthday to me/As usual, I'm forty-three/And that is all I'll ever be.

Here's a picture of the house at 429 Stetler Avenue, Ellet, Ohio, which Fiorella lived in for the first seven years of her life.  Back then, the front porch was not enclosed, and Fiorella remembers her father sitting her on the railing to watch the fireworks on Fourth of July.

Picture Perfect

Here's our Sonya!