It’s a strange new world.

04/14/2020  It’s now 7:20 Tuesday night. The TV is on the YouTube dog channel. Last night the boys were actually watching the TV. There were a few dogs on a beach and they ran off to the left, off the screen. Gringo ran to the left of the TV and looked behind it for those dogs. He was so confused.

I’m at my laptop rubbing olive oil on my hands, arms, neck and face. Also on the ends of my hair. Feeling my Italian heritage tonight.

I’m using olive oil because I’m too lazy to get the coconut oil on the back porch. Twenty steps away and I’ve already walked 5.42 miles today, 12,294 steps. L A Z Y  Olive oil smells just as good, maybe more delicious than exotic, but good nonetheless.

Seriously, who would have thought that we would experience something like this in our lifetime? Not me for sure. I moved here to see my kids more, for a change of scenery, to explore new places, visit new cities and here I sit at my house, looking at the same walls every day and wondering when the world will run the hell out of toilet paper. WHO KNEW??

I’m not complaining. I have a house, I have food and everything else that I need. I’m OK alone, I’m bored and continually spend $$ but I’m OK, so far. I lived alone on Roatan for 4 months, left Mar 2013, with a dog I resued while there, Highway. I’ve been here in AZ since Dec 29, 2019. Carmen and Brett were here for a week and Bill for 9 days. Other than that, it’s the dogs and me.

Our days consist of: waking up around 6:30. The boys don’t move until I actually get up. They go out to potty. I get dressed, brush my teeth, grab a drink of water and we leave. Walking one at a time, so I walk 3 times in a row every morning and afternoon. I’m currently averaging 6 miles a day. In $40.00 Skechers.

Trace just talked me into buying some Altra shoes, they will be here this week. I bought an expensive, not necessarily good, pair of shoes in Feb. I can’t wear them, they’re Abeos. Don’t buy Abeos.

It’s going to get too hot to walk pretty soon, unless we go really early. I don’t want to go at dusk because I see what the coyotes kill laying along the walkway by the desert every morning, I’m not into a coyote meeting with any of my dogs. I’ve seen enough rabbit parts for the year already. My neighbor messaged me tonight to watch for rattlesnakes while walking by the desert, he said they’re coming out. GREAT NEWS.

My dogs are still idiots when they see another dog. Total idiots. Sometimes I think, why am I even walking them? It’s tiresome. I still am not convinced they know they are dogs.

Many flowers are in bloom along the paths of where we walk. Bottlebrush and Coreopsis are everywhere.

I’ve noticed that many cactus are starting to flower. Even the one in my backyard has buds on it and the barrel cactus out front has flowers.

I’m waiting for a landscape guy to come. I have 3 miscanthus shrubs (thank you Stan for identifying them for me) that I want gone. They’re dirty and ugly during the winter. The guy that I bought the house from planted a tree in the front yard, after much googling, I figured out it was a Jacaranda. As pretty as they are, I thought it looked stupid there and they are messy dirty trees anyhow so I advertised it, for free. Had a ton of people want it. Some guy came and dug it out and took it home to plant. That was easy. Gee, maybe he wants my miscanthus.

The dogs consume most of my life. Max had a tooth pulled a few weeks ago. The vet said he would be very groggy for a few hours. He came home and jumped in the pool. Groggy my butt. He did get spoiled and had wet dog food for a week, it didn’t seem to bother him and his teeth are sparkling now. He’s such a lazy butt. He fell asleep the other day in the chair, an everyday occurrence.

Then Barrio had a sneezing fit and startled Max.

I was brushing my teeth and went back in the bedroom to go to bed and had 77# of fur laying where my body usually goes. I have to smoosh into bed and keep gently nudging him, in 15-20 minutes he will eventually move.

I have been baking like crazy, coconut oatmeal cookies, choc chip banana bread, choc chip cookies and then 2 loaves of apple bread. Funny thing is, I have no desire to eat it. I walk some stuff over to Nick and give to George and Stella, my super awesome neighbors. I even froze cookies because I didn’t want to throw them away and I didn’t want to eat them. Stella has bought me about 8# of flour, I am unable to get it when I order groceries. I still can’t get yeast. Maybe it’s a good thing, I start baking bread, I’ll never stop. Speaking of baking, I got a new apron. I haven’t had one for years.

I also bought a sticker for my water bottle (yes, I’m a teenager again).

What I NEVER thought of was that the page protector holes may not line up with the rings in the binder. They didn’t. So I had to order a hole punch and punch new holes in 95% of the page protectors. That was a hateful job.

Bill, Highway and Lola are still stuck on the island. The Mayor issued a statement that some businesses could reopen but had to maintain safety measures, then the Honduran govt said oh no they can’t. Who knows, it is Honduras after all. I’ve read that the island won’t be reopened to tourism until September, if that’s true it will have a devastating effect on the local economy. It is already a poor island, I don’t know how it can get much worse, but it will. Bill is still confined to home, allowed to go out only on Mondays, determined by the last digit of your residency card. He’s bored beyond belief, luckily he’s brewing beer, that gives him something to do.

I’m grabbing a kiwi and the other half of the dragonfruit and going back outside. It’s too damn cold in this house. I hate air conditioning, but I bet I will learn to love it in a few months.