News Trend Up A Tree|Actual

Little Sirius had  not been seen in almost twenty four hours and we were worried sick.

Granted, our tenderhearted tuxedo cat has spent many a summer night outdoors. In his youth, no doubt he led a wild and mysterious life after dark, roaming his territory that consists of our yard, and the two neighbors' yards across the street. But Sirius is getting a bit on in years now  and his habits have changed somewhat. Though he still likes to prowl around during the wee hours in warm weather, he now spends his nights sleeping under the daylilies in our backyard, and certainly we always find him waiting at the back door by dawn. Sirius does not miss many meals.

So when we returned home this afternoon to find him still missing, my daughters decided to mount a search. Wandering around his territorial properties, my fourth let forth a series of fairly cat-like calls, meowing to him as we often do when we call him home.

Within a few minutes, she heard a sweet sound.

Sirius meowed back to her.

With waves of relief and wild surges of adrenaline, two more daughters joined the hunt. As human and cat called back and forth to each other, Daughters Two, Three, and Four followed the sound of our cat's plaintive yeowls to find him, quite literally, up a tree.

Look in the center of this photo. See the sunshine on the trunk of the tree? Now track to the left of the trunk, and that little black blob with pointy ears is our Sirius.

He was high up in a neighbor's tree, standing on a branch and hugging the trunk, about twenty feet above ground.

In an instant, my fourth-born put together a rescue mission. My husband joined the hunt, as did the man in whose backyard this adventure was unfolding, and his son and daughter, ages seven and four.

An extension ladder was produced.

My fourth-born scurried up, and then crossed over to climbing up the tree another five feet or so.

Treats were offered.

Poor Sirius clearly wanted down, but was uncertain how to lower himself down the long sections of trunk between the limbs.

Ideas were brainstormed

Google was searched.

And after several misfires, the team came up with the idea of rigging a rope over a branch above Sirius to raise our cat kennel up and rest it on the branch where Sirius was trapped. Once that was accomplished, my tree-born daughter offered some sweet-talking and more treats in the kennel, and eventually coaxed Sirius inside. Once the door was safely latched, the rope operators on the ground lowered him to terra firma, and the whole group triumphantly brought him home.

A closer shot of a scared kitty up a big tree.

Over the next few hours, I'm happy to report that Sirius ate several meals, allowed his family and neighbor children to fuss enormously over him, purred ecstatically, and slept hard.

We are very happy that he's home again.

And we are also relieved that,at least for now, he has shown absolutely no interest in going back outside.

When he is ready, surely he will venture out. Our cats love spending time outdoors and we feel responsible for allowing them to live their best lives.

But even when he feel ready to head out to our sunny back garden, I suspect it will be quite some time before our Sirius climbs up another tree.

News Trend Morning Sadnesses|Actual

Last night, life was just a bowl of cherries but this morning, I feel kinda sad.

Some mornings, you are jolted abruptly from sleep. And instead of feeling fresh and excited for a new day, you already feel tired and used up. All the trials of yesterday still blaze in your brain; the frustrations and heartaches have only intensified during the night.

That's a situation that calls for immediate action:

A bowl of leftover stir-fry, brought upstairs to be eaten in bed while it's still piping hot.

Moments of peaceful non-thinking  while listening to the gentle deep breaths of a loyal and sleepy dog.

Prayers for wisdom and peace.

And a reminder that these burdens are nothing more or less than a part of life. They will lighten as the sun climbs higher in the sky; they may or may not return tomorrow. And that's okay.

Then you shake off these morning sadnesses and begin the rest of your day.

News Trend Last Day In Danang|Actual

It was our last evening in Vietnam, so my second-born and I decided to celebrate the sunset with one last motorbike adventure around Danang.

We headed up the beach road toward Son Tra, then turned right across the tiny peninsula of land at the north end of the city.  Then it was up and over the biggest of Danang's four bridges, where we crossed the Han River. Midway, we opted to pull over for a view of Danang Bay, where the South China Sea lies strangely to the west.

Our timing was perfect.

^ There on the sidewalk of the busy bridge, we watched as the sun slowly dropped behind the Asian continent. Awestruck by the moment, we silently marveled over how we came to be standing in this spot, so far from home, and drinking in this glory.

^ Later that night, we wrapped up our final outing with one last trip across the illustrious Dragon Bridge, which is festive in its own right.

^ But nothing can compare to the sunset we saw on our last day in Danang.

News Trend El Jardin Me Hace Sonrier|Actual

During our days in sunny Cabo, the pool and the beach areas are popping.

]

People come and go throughout the day, taking meals, whooshing off to other activities, returning later for a much needed cooling off in the water.

Others, like my daughters and me, stake out our chairs early and stay all day, sunning ourselves amidst happy piles of novels, cameras, cover-ups, buckets of ice water, and the ubiquitous bottle of sunscreen.

Waiters balance heavy trays as they navigate the traffic, cruising round the pool, down the stairs, and across the hot sand to make sure that every guest is properly refreshed.

Even the lizards crawl out from their hidey holes and bask in the middle of the hot walkways.

But as the late afternoon sun slowly sinks behind the west wing of the hotel, the buzz slowly fades. Imperceptibly at first, then in waves and swells, we all call our kids in from the water, pack up our belongings, and head back to our rooms for showers, actual clothes, and an adventure out for dinner.

At this lovely time of day, my daughters and I have fallen into a happy tradition. Once we are feeling fresh and clean, we slip out to a secret garden in the golden light of evening.

I suppose it's not actually a secret garden. There are no walls or hidden doorways. Certainly the staff is spending plenty of time keeping it up. But the other guests do not seem to know this precious place exists, so we always have it all to ourselves.

So step with me out from the cool of the covered walkway along the back of the building, look across the open space, and be prepared for what is about to burst into view.

^ Bougainvillea. Big, bodacious, bougainvillea in hot pink. Look how the blossoms glow with the low rays of the sun. This giant planting of the tropical classic is the star of the secret garden; see how it stretches along the full length of the wide, white wall to the north. In some places, the tendrils stretch up beyond the structure to wave in the blue sky above. See the pink translucent petals against the sunlight sky? Amazing.

^ Now look close. Zero in on an individual blossom, undulating waves of pink petals complete with a white wide-eyed center. Decide for yourself which sight you prefer: the masses of vines billowing across the white wall and stretching out into the deep blue sky, or the brilliant pink waves of each perfect flower.

I can never choose.

Now, turn your back to the bougainvillea, if you dare, and look south along the back of the building. Tucked into corners and niches all along the exterior walkways, planted in immaculate beds of carefully raked sand, see the gardens full of cacti and succulents.

^ Blue agave, majestic and serene.

^ Barrel cactus, geometric and covered with not-so-sharp spines. Dare you to touch them.

^ Isn't it amazing how the simple and serene pink blossoms of the desert rose hold their own against the riotous bougainvillea? They're both pink flowers, it's true, but there's a place in my heart for each one.

^ While each plant is gorgeous in its own right, it's the vignettes of plant, stone, and that crazy raked sand that sweep me off my feet.

^ This is not a caterpillar. Just a very weird cacti sort of something that looks rad against the radiating leaves of the spiky plant beyond.

^ Is this particular blue agave more or less perfect that the other half dozen we've seen? I can't tell; can you? Let's just take a million pics of each one and figure it out later.

^ Uhh what. Is this from an episode of Stranger Things? It frightens me so hurry, let's move on.

^ And here, at the end of cacti plantings, we come to the last delight of the secret garden. A euphorbia milii, also know as crown of thorns, which I fell in love with at first sight in my adventures around Malaysia. The soft and rounded petals, the subtly shaded coral pink, the generous green leaves - everything about this lovely makes me smile.

And that, I think, is the perfect purpose of our secret garden. In the soft sunlight of the ending day, this beautiful place makes me smile.

* * * * *

Read all about my latest trip to Mexico

Vamos A Mexico!

Me Gusta Nadar

Bonita En Rosa

El Jardin Me Hace Sonrier

La Comida A Flora Farms

La Mejor Parte

News Trend Me Gusta Nadar|Actual

I love to swim.

Let's be honest. I spend most of my time in Mexico in the pool.

I love swimming in the ocean, too. Probably even more so. But that is more of an event.

Swimming in the pool is an all-day way of life for me.

Well.

Swimming.

Floating.

Standing under the waterfall.

Half-walking, half-hanging onto a floatie shared with a daughter.

Kicking around while holding the ledge of the pool and talking to daughters who are out of the pool.

Sitting in the water.

Sitting on the steps into the water.

And on and on it goes.

^ Much of my day is spent looking up at the undersides of the umbrellas, the wings of mother birds who want to protect me from the sun. But they don't do me much good in the pool, and despite my best intentions and 70 SPF, I am usually sunburned by the end of the day.

^ I'm obsessed with floaties and always looking out for the next best thing. These alligators are designed to hover above the water and looked super cute floating around the pool on their own, or caught up in prolonged wrestling matches with their eight-ish and ten-ish-year-old owners.

^ It takes a lot to get me out of the water and back into the fierce Mexican sun. And by a lot, I mean a plate of fish tacos and an icy drink. Cabo is the birthplace of the fish taco and I am religiously devoted to them. My second-born and I each devoured a plateful every day by noon, and on our fourth day, our delightful, efficient, and oftentimes hilarious pool water named Luis observed, "You sure like to eat fish tacos."

Yes. Yes, I do, Luis. I love to eat your freaking delicious fish tacos.

Almost as much as I like to swim.

* * * * *

Read all about my latest trip to Mexico

Vamos A Mexico!

Me Gusta Nadar

Bonita En Rosa

El Jardin Me Hace Sonrier

La Comida A Flora Farms

La Mejor Parte

News Trend Bonita En Rosa|Actual

I have a well-documented obsession with pink buildings:

the Pink Hotel in my Michigan hometown

the Stylenanda Pink Hotel in Seoul,

not to mention the Glossier mostly-pink pop-up stores in Chicago and Seattle.

But this pretty-in-pink princess may just take the cake.

^ Officially known as the Pueblo Bonito Rose, she is the sister resort and next-door neighbor to our all-white lodgings, known as the Blanco. We could visit the sparkling turquoise pool here, or take our meals in the pink-shaded courtyards, but honestly, we have never really gotten around to that.

^ The main reason we walk over here to the Rose is to use the ATM. What a delicious mash-up of practicality and utter romance.

^ And the best time to do that is in late afternoon, when the western sun sets these pink walls to glowing, and each facet of the cleverly deigned building is cast in rose-colored relief to the others.

6 She becomes a study in lines, angles, planes, and shapes, all radiating subtle variations of rosy light, complemented by lush tropical greenery, curving and arcing in its own elegant geometry.

^ I do get quite caught up in her elegant appearance. Funny though, I don't want to stay here. The thought rarely even crosses my mind.

^ It's enough to walk by her every other day or so, to drink in her exotic beauty, and to admire her pink charm.

^ My daughters admire her too. I can't imagine how anyone could resist her sweet charms.

^ And when we return to the Blanco, our pristinely white home-away-from-home, we stop by the flamingo pool to admire our own smaller version of pretty in pink.

* * * * *

Read all about my latest trip to Mexico

Vamos A Mexico!

Me Gusta Nadar

Bonita En Rosa

El Jardin Me Hace Sonrier

La Comida A Flora Farms

La Mejor Parte

News Trend Lucky 13|Actual

"I will be a birthday angel and wait patiently for my treat!!"

Last summer, shortly after Ranger turned twelve, his health began to rapidly fail.

Tumors erupted on his rear end.

His appetite fell off but his thirst was insatiable; he dropped a lot of weight.

Wilting in the (not that hot) summer heat, he dragged through his summer walks.

I saw the writing on the wall and suspected that he would be gone by Christmas.

"That smells delicious!"

Around November, my boy's appetite had bounced back but his biggest tumor was growing unchecked. His vet sadly turned him down as a surgical candidate; big tumors are too risky to open up and he would likely not survive the procedure.

"Take him home and give him a good life," Dr. Bennett consoled me.

I measured Ranger's future in weeks.

"Lamb chops? YUM! Let me take that off your hands."

Then, on February 20, my boy was attacked by another dog who bit his tumor and broke it open. Losing blood rapidly, he barely made it to the emergency vet. She got the bleeding stopped but told us that Ranger's wounds never heal and advised us to euthanize him on the spot.

"No," I said, faster than my husband could blink. "We will give him a chance to recover."

We faced a long road in nursing Ranger back to health. I prayed he would make it to Easter.

"Mmmmm! What a tasty morsel. I'm in birthday heaven."

And now, here we are in July.

My boy has made it to another birthday, and I must say, he's cruising along pretty well:

His appetite and attitude are both on point; he's worked his way back up to his full 45-minute walks.

His wounds are all healed, his tumors look as healthy as evil lumps can look.

And every day, my dog surprises me with his good spirits and scary-clever persoalan solving skills.

Surely, at the impressive age of ninety-one, Ranger is in his twilight years. But I've given up guessing how long he will survive.

Video of lamb-chop eating dog available here

All I want to do today is celebrate another year of fine living with my good boy, Ranger, and pinch myself to believe that he actually made it to Lucky 13.