Monday Tom and I celebrated our 19th wedding anniversary. Our low-key celebrations included breakfast out at the lovely Blue Sky Cafe in Golden, a long nap (because we’re both exhausted on the cosmic level), and … the addition of a new pet into the household. That’s BIG news, kids.
OK.
19 new pets.
Meet the Anniversary Spawn, who are currently living in a big stock pot on the kitchen counter until our pond warms up enough for them to be outside.
I am VERY excited to have new little beings in the family, especially because this last week our heaping pile of grief grew again:
- Last Friday, a childhood friend of mine lost her 19-year-old cat (Ollie) to spleen cancer that had spread to her brain. Ollie was a lovely, orange girl … which is kind of rare because most orange kitties are boys.
- My Uncle Bill died on Monday after a sudden bought with medical troubles. He married into my large, Italian family years and years ago. We took him on as our own (as is our custom). His wife, my Auntie Helen, is my mom’s godmother. Her daughter is my godmother, so Bill … in addition to my uncle … was sort of my what? God-grandfather? He was a very sweet and funny man, and we will miss him.
The Return of Marine Life to Chez Champion of My Heart
We haven’t had fish in the pond for many years since an early freeze wiped out our previous school of fish, which included a really big boy we named Cartman.
They had lived three years — THREE YEARS, which I believe to be quite long for your average, regular goldfish. They would summer in the pond and winter in a tub in the house. In and out, they went for three years, but then a freak, early freeze made getting them out impossible. I was crushed.
My timing is probably terrible since it’s predicted to be such a dry summer, but if we have to pull them out of the pond and bring them inside, we will.
But, in the meantime, I’m looking forward to sitting on the bank and watching them swim around. (Once it warms up enough to sit outside, of course.)
Oooh, how pretty. I love goldfish.
Take lots of pictures; they’ll grow fast.
Am I the only one who was certain it wasn’t a puppy? Now I have to confess that the tiny pic indicated a dog dish with some kind of aquatic scum (sorry fishies!).
It was a really small picture!
Yes, the picture … for those who saw a FB post … gave it away, but for others who only saw the headline, then I think I was more sneaky.
And indeed, goldfish are dirty little buggers. But, you cannot blame it all on them. The ring around the pot actually comes from years of cooking up Chinese herbal remedies. That’s what stained my supposedly stainless steel pot. The other gunk? Yep, that’s slimy fish.
I thought you got a puppy, too! But then, I was wondering what Lilly would think of that!
Cartman the fish! You kill me! Congratulations, condolences, and courage that the warm days will come soon.
I, too, thought you had adopted a puppy! But congratulations on your new golden family and Happy Anniversary!
Well, that was quite the teaser! I guess pond fish are exciting too but I was thinking you succumbed to the puppy madness. I want to put in a little pond for Java (I don’t think Latte likes water). But it will have to be dog durable so I don’t think fish or lovely lilly pads will be part of the picture.
I know. I know, Living Large & Maery. I was campaigning for some ducklings for the pond so that Lilly would have some friends to herd into a safe spot each night, but then Tom asked … where would the ducks live in winter? And, I knew my critter needs had been squelched.
So, we settled on some new fish for the pond. If it warms up enough today, we might move them from the pot on the kitchen counter out to the pond.
And, Maery, the dogs love having a place to splash around and cool off in the summer. BUT, that means we always have to check them before they come in the house because even a little “mud bogging” can make a real mess. Our pond isn’t one of those fancy landscaped ones. It’s a full-on, hole in the ground with water.