Mellow Yellow

Steamed plantain with pan-fried tilapia made for a feast for me and made for special, hand-fed treats for my furry friends. To my surprise, this included our finicky kitty, who got the least contaminated (by my liberal use of turmeric and peppers) bits of fish. Tumeric turned the tilapia bright yellow, blending perfectly with the yellow of the plantain. There is something especially appealing about the color yellow in food for me. I love bananas and have to hide them out of my sight, or their cheerful yellowness will beckon to me. Canaries, golden yellow melons, hold a much stronger attraction for me than any of the other kind. There probably are deeper reasons to our attractions and our use of colors, even in food. Van Gogh's often interpreted use of yellow related to his physical and psychological health does come to mind. Whatever it may be, we enjoyed our monochromatic meal.

Domesticity

Got my kitchen faucet fixed, finally. The hot water started to leak in early September. This faucet had leaked before - and stopped, yep it happens the professionals explained to me how. I had held high hopes for another 'miracle' meanwhile I would shut off the main incoming valve during those times I did not need water. That's when I really learned to appreciate the frequent need for running water, the seemingly incessant need for washing hands when living with and caring for companion animals. 

When the main incoming valve started to leak last week I got worried and wondered if I was to experience my own kind of flooding shortly, as I was preoccupied mostly with the horrible catastrophe that was and still is unfolding in Puerto Rico. So, last Friday I reluctantly called the professionals. It took 5 days, 3 visits from the Drain Surgeons, the proceeds of 4 hours of my own labor, countless buckets of collected water transferred for use later, and the expense of a brand new, but luckily on sale faucet, though not nearly as nice as my old one that pleased my eyes and I really liked. The silver lining, the mess under my kitchen sink got duly inspected and mostly rearranged.

SUMO 12 Years Old

Today Sumo is 12 years old

which would make him 64 in human years.

My little guy caught up with me!

Yes, this year Sumo aged.

In March Sumo's Vet took an educated guess,

Cancer!

The vet did not expect him to live to June.

But here he is, still among us,

still curious and taking an interest.

But Sumo slowed down a lot, 

sleeps a lot,

seems to conserve his energy

by sitting and waiting,

rather than moving and exploring. 

My high-energy buddy, 

that ran 12 miles in front of 10 dogs

now attempts half-hearted spurts after bunnies.

My formerly fearless guy now gets spooked easily. 

The clanging of his bowl against the brick floor

will make him hesitant about approaching his food.

I got Sumo a big whole chicken as a present.

I boiled it, took off the meat and made the rest into a stew.

I offered smallish size portions through the day,

so I can check how he digests.

Today, I decided to add Isabella's supplement for joints, Connectin,

to Sumo's diet as I had observed an unfamiliar stiffness in his limbs.

Yesterday, we picked up another bottle of CBD oil

it seems to make a difference.

I sure wish we had more scientific research on the medical benefits,

but the anecdotal evidence seems overwhelmingly favorable.

Observing Sumo's changes made me sad - and glad he is still among us.

Taking shorter walks in less familiar places

I discovered this charming entry yesterday.

Puerto Rico - Lin-Manuel Miranda 2016

Lin-Manuel Miranda's Personal Plea for Puerto Rico

John Oliver's whole take on Puerto Rico's massive debt, 2016.