In Which I Get a Grant and Then Can't Sleep

The title of this posting pretty much says it all. Yaaaay!! Hooray for me! I got a grant from the state, which makes me a National Treasure (all friends/family members/coworkers/sycophants take note!) and worthy of the utmost respect. Hey! This is my third (3 time's the charm!!) grant from the state so I must be doing something right...
After all that excitement and the general craziness at work, I was so tired and strung out that I couldn't sleep on Monday night. That meant I was doubly tired and mixed up on Tuesday, so of course I couldn't sleep again and had another of my crazy post-Apocalyptic dreams. That made me such a mess on Wednesday that I actually cancelled my riding lesson. Boy, I KNOW I was tired if I bagged on that as I look forward to my ride all week long. I tried napping but Robin the Good keep poking me with her nose and paws to make sure I wasn't dead and I never really did sleep until later that night. I think I've caught up now, but it still hasn't entirely sunk in that I got a grant.
So what does one do after all the dust settles and reality hits? I start a new piece! *(1) Seen above is another of that awful Rush Limbaugh's portmanteaus... "Feminist" and "Nazi" make "Feminazi", of course: a title I will proudly claim if it makes me deplorable in Rush Limbaugh's lard encrusted eyeballs. I began this piece when I heard that The Orange Menace had awarded Limbaugh The Fucking Medal of Freedom for (apparently) being a racist, sexist, homophobic right-wing moron. I swear, what won't they dream up next? I read that The Orange Menace was dictating what kind of architecture is to be used in governmental buildings- shades of Mussolini!! Could things get any weirder??!? Dangerous question, that! *(2)

*(1) Well, yes, I started a new piece but it was so cold my studio wouldn't warm up so I actually began a through house cleaning. I vacuumed upstairs, downstairs and the actual stairs and am going to clean the bathrooms once I post this. Maybe I should hire a cleaning person with that grant money! Hahahahahah!


*(2) And now reports have The Orange Menace wanting to do a victory lap in the presidential limousine (nicknamed "The Beast") at the Daytona 500 or some other NASCAR event. Banana Republic here we come!!

Who Wore It Better? (And Other Goings On)

                              
                              

Well... what do you think? Bob was channeling his inner Billy Porter and I was fortunate enough to capture him on camera. I guess we needed a bit of light hearted diversion as there's so much grimness out there: like the death of democracy! But hey! Who's counting?
Anyway, I vow not to be political in this post as we all need a break but WTF?!?!!? Our newly minted king is already feeling his wild oats and wreaking havoc throughout the kingdom...  Arrrughh! What was I just saying? Hard NOT to be obsessed with all things political. Well, thanks to Mitt Romney anyway.
Okay, here's something completely different. Bob (although not wearing that attractive lampshade head ornament) has been inspired to build a nice wooden gate behind our wood pile, which serves to not only provide a back stop for our fire wood, but shields us from the neighbor's house.

Looks almost religious. Hahahaha! That's just the difference in wood tones between the fence sections he used to construct the two gate panels and the reinforcing vertical strips. Soon enough, they will all weather to the same shade. The gate now easily opens so that we can simply back the truck up and unload firewood. We used to have to toss it over the fence which was way more work and supremely awkward. Additionally, when we sit on our terrace and enjoy our afternoon coffee or a nice pre-dinner cocktail, we no longer have to catch glimpses of our neighbor's suburban Shangri La.
Awesome; let's hear it for Bob!
The next picture tells a sadder tale:

While strolling about the garden, desperately wishing for the arrival of an early spring, I couldn't help but remark to myself that our DeGroot's Spire Arborvitae looked particularly slim. (They're supposed to be narrow, but this was extreme). Several days later, it looked even skinnier. It dawned on me that we have fallen prey to the scourge of foraging deer, a fate we have been spared until now. I was so pissed! They even chewed off DeGroot's little topknot; I sure hope he recovers this spring! I swaddled him as a protection, but it's too late to have prevented the damage done. No longer will I be cavalier and assume we're lucky. This spring will bring a stepped up campaign of spraying deer repellent and vigilance!