Better late than never.

Posted on April 23, 2016 by luckyotter

Relaxing in the kava bar.

Today was fun. You may remember, my daughter’s birthday was last Tuesday and we were supposed to meet, but she was sick and the day was a total bust. Last weekend she was working, so we made her “birthday” today. I had planned to drive up the Blue Ridge Parkway and take her for lunch at a restaurant I know up there, but the weather looked iffy, so I took her to the same little inexpensive eatery I went to with my son early this month (appropriately named The Lucky Otter–yes, this blog is named after it) and we sat outside and enjoyed watching the people walking along Haywood Road.

We were stuffed, so we decided to walk to a nearby kava bar. My daughter goes there a lot; I have never been to one before, or had kava before. For those of you who aren’t familiar with kava, it’s a very bad tasting herbal drink that has a relaxing effect (it doesn’t make you high though and it’s perfectly legal). Their information sheet called it “the anti-coffee.” Here is more information about it:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kava

The kava, which is gray-green and viscous-looking, was ladled out of a somewhat unsanitary looking punch bowl into a plastic cup. It was served with another plastic cup of orange juice as a chaser, to cleanse the palate because it tastes nasty. I was a little afraid to try it because it looked so gross and was supposed to taste terrible, but it actually wasn’t too bad. It’s definitely strange tasting, but not really gross. I can’t quite explain the taste but if dirt came as a liquid, that’s what it would come close to. It leaves your mouth feeling slightly numb, but soon you feel relaxed.

Kava on the right; orange juice chaser on the left.

The kava bar was interesting too. Very rustic, lots of hippies and hipsters sat around on laptops, writing, or playing on their phones. Rock music played at a low volume in the background. Local art hung on the walls and sofas and recliners lined the room. We sat for awhile, drinking our kavas and just watching the sights. Afterwards, we just walked around and stopped by a small yard sale, where they were trying to give away stuff because they were closing up shop for the day. I got a new purse and pullover sweater–for free!

Inside the kava bar.

I got this for nothing!

My daughter had to get to work, so we walked back to the car and called it a day. I’m glad we got to spend some time together.

Happy cat.

Posted on April 17, 2016 by luckyotter

Our pets know how to be happy. They never worry about the past or the future; they always are completely in the moment, which I think is the key to happiness.

Here’s my tuxedo cat, Sheldon, enjoying the scratchy spring grass. I think if he was physically capable of smiling, he would be doing just that. You can click on the photos to get a closer look at this goofy little guy.

A reflective trip into our common past.

Posted on April 7, 2016 by luckyotter

My son said he’s spent today feeling reflective and wanted to revisit some of the places he knew as a child, including the home he and his sister were raised in by us. Compared to the last two days, which were fun and active, today was quieter and more reflective for both of us. It was also very healing and put a lot of perspective onto things.

So we took the 20 minute drive to where he grew up, parked the car and just walked around looking (without trying to look too suspicious!) Our old house has fallen into disrepair (I don’t know if anyone lives there) but back in 1993, just after we purchased the house, we planted some trees.

We had this nutty idea of importing 30 tiny Canadian redwood seedlings from a company in British Columbia, Canada. I remember we had to wait a while for them even after they shipped, because first they had to pass some kind of inspection in Florida to make sure they were free of aphids and other microbes that they might have been carrying from outside the US. I remember when we finally got the seedlings, I had to keep them in a tub for a few days to moisten and soften their roots before planting them.

Redwoods are not indigenous to North Carolina, but we did some researchh and found out the moderate humid climate here is actually conducive to their growth, which is why we took a chance on them. Over the years most of the seedlings died, and when the house was finally sold (well, actually foreclosed on) in 2003, the next owners chopped most of the surviving redwoods (about 5 or 6 left) down. I remember being so enraged by that. At the time the doomed young redwoods were about 8-10 feet tall.

But there is one last survivor, a beautiful, majestic redwood that is now 30-40 feet tall and looks very much at home among the small grove of other large trees that were either non-existent or very small when we bought the house in 1993. Here is that redwood as it is today. It’s hard to wrap my head around the fact that twenty-three years ago it sat in my tub upon arrival encased in a root ball with a plastic bag tied around it.

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redwood1

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Closeup of the bark–beautiful, red and burled.

I got photos of the rest of the trees (the ones I was able to–I didn’t want to be caught trespassing), all so much bigger than they were in 1993 or even ten years ago. Here’s a cherry tree that was very tiny, barely more than a sapling, but is now a huge shady tree big and sturdy enough to support a tire swing. When my kids were little, the tree was too small to climb, but they used to pick caterpillars from its bark and collect them in a bucket (to be released outside later, as per my instructions.)

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View of the property as it is today. It was quite bare and almost treeless when we moved in. You can see part of the house on the right. The pink magnolia directly to the left of the house I planted there as a tiny seedling in 1996.

Here is a closeup of the magnolia:

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One of the many pine trees showing off its huge sturdy trunk:

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The tree pictured below was the only one that was already big when we purchased the property in 1993, but it’s at least twice the size now and wide enough at the bottom to make a perfect fort for kids to play under. Hell, I used to go sit under that tree to escape from my then husband! Sometimes I even read books under there.

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2 views of the remains of our old outbuilding. The roof has collapsed. My son and I are both attracted to the eerie beauty of abandoned buildings. Seeing the shed we used to store our gardening equipment and other things in was a little bittersweet. I didn’t dare go inside.

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A nearby “bamboo forest” growing behind the elementary school my kids attended. It wasn’t there then. Bamboo may be an invasive weed in this country because of its lack of natural enemies to keep its growth in check, but I find it beautiful. I find the same to be true of Kudzu, which also grows here.

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Finally, a view of our old neighborhood from the top of a nearby hill:

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My son is flying back to Florida in the wee hours this morning. I’m going to miss him, but I feel so happy we had such an amazing time together.

Tomorrow I’ll be able to return to blogging as usual. I’ve been so busy the past few days that keeping up has been difficult. I didn’t even have time to post a Monday Melody, but I promise there will be a new one this coming Monday.

A very busy day.

Posted on April 6, 2016 by luckyotter

I got off early today and my son, his friend Ryan and my daughter came by to pick me up, and we drove out to the WNC Nature Center in East Asheville (Oteen). Four of us; four cameras popping. The day was a bit cool but otherwise perfect, and the animals had just woken up from their daytime meal and were just beginning to become active (though the cougars still seemed a bit lazy).

I took a lot of pictures, and they are in no particular order because there are just so many. So I just peppered them throughout this post. I haven’t given them captions either. I also included some photos ofmy daughter, son, myself and Ryan. The “prism” photos of my daughter and me were a total accident–I’m not sure how that happened but they are cool so I’m posting them.

CLICK ON PHOTOS TO SEE FULL SIZE

We wanted to see the snake and reptile house too, but they were closed for renovations. We probably spent a good two hours there. We saw all sorts of animals indigenous to this area–otters (pretty much everyone’s favorite), giant turtles, birds of prey (I got photos of the owls), wolves (they were still sleeping and are hard to see because of their camouflage), coyotes (one came right up to the fence), foxes (they were very hard to see and too far away to get good photos), cougars (the adorable male and female pair was cuddled up together), and of course the petting zoo animals (goats and donkeys). We also saw deer and a caterpillar web. I got a pretty good closeup of that. I wanted to see the black bears in action but they seemed to be AWOL today.

wnc_naturecenter

We spent about two hours at the Nature Center, and then we all went to eat at O’Charley’s. My son’s friend Casey joined us. I don’t think I’ve ever been so hungry in my life. After our early dinner, we caught the 7 PM showing of Zootopia. I’m finally home, and exhausted, but in a good way. Tomorrow’s his last day here. We haven’t decided what we’re doing yet but it will probably be a less active day.

I not only love my son, I like him too.

Posted on April 5, 2016 by luckyotter

It’s entirely possible to love your child, but not particularly like them, or at least not like the things they do. But my son has grown into an outstanding young man, and not only that, we share many of the same interests. He’s like a more extroverted version of me. We have the same sense of humor and basic philosophies about life. If I just met him on the street, I could see us being friends.

I was annoyed at work because it was taking too long to get done, and I wanted to be off early to spend some time with my son since he’s only here until Thursday morning. He kept himself busy while I was working though. He met up with his sister, who loaned him her car while he’s here (he didn’t have enough to rent a car) and they went to the mall, and then went back to her place and they hung out with her boyfriend (they are back together, sort of) and their dad (my ex). Apparently my ex mellowed quite a bit as far as our son goes, and I was happy to hear they had a nice conversation.

I finally arrived home about 3:30 and didn’t expect to see my son until late tonight, but within the hour he came in the house and announced, “I’m taking you out for a ride.” Okay, I thought. I put away the laptop and changed my clothes, and we got in the car and drove first to his old high school, which he wanted to see. He said it was weird seeing the old sights after so many years (he hasn’t lived here since 2010)

Then we drove into the funky, arty part of town which is filled with old hippies and young hipsters, musicians, consignment shops, unique hole in the wall stores of all kinds, craft beer bars (we live in the craft beer capital of the USA), and many little eateries, most which have areas where you can dine outside.

We walked up and down Haywood Road and just looked at the people and the shops. There’s always so much to see there. He took a lot of pictures using his new 35mm camera. He got a really cool photo of an old abandoned white church. Like me, he’s fascinated by abandoned buildings (I wonder what that says about us).

We finally were hungry, and decided to eat at one of the little eateries, a Tex-Mex and seafood establishment called, of all things, The Lucky Otter (which is the restaurant that inspired the name of this blog). I mean, I just had to eat there, having named my blog after it. I even got a picture of the sign!

We sat outdoors as it grew dark. I had a bowl of chili with cheese and sour cream and a locally made orange-vanilla soda. He got a veggie-seafood burrito and the same kind of soda. The food was cheap and good, and a friendly black and white puppy from the next table came up to visit us. The puppy was adorable but hard to get a good picture of because she wouldn’t stop moving. I can’t get over the pale pink lacy bow tied on the back of her collar! I also got a couple of pictures of my son.

Later we stopped in a convenience store he used to frequent when he was about 12 or 13 and it’s completely changed–the laundromat that used to be there now sells craft beer and the design is much more up to date and includes organic foods along with the usual chips, candy and soda. Both of us are addicted to a locally made drink called Dr. Enuf, which is made in Tennessee and apparently can only be found in this area. We like the cherry kind with the ginseng and purchased one for each of us.

We drove back to my house where we looked through old picture albums and I found a box of his old CDs from the early 2000s filled with the nu-metal he used to love so much. I had no idea I still had them, and it was like Christmas morning for him as he looked at all these old CDs, which he’s bringing back to Florida with him.

Two years apart is way too long. I’m off for a week in July and we decided I’m going to drive down to Florida to see him and stay in his apartment while there, so my only expenses will be gas to get there and back, and a little spending money.

It was a good day. Tomorrow he’s taking his sister and me to see the animated film Zootopia.

One last thing: I received my copy of Complex PTSD: From Surviving to Thriving by Pete Walker, which my good friend Linda Lee sent me as a gift. Thank you, Linda!

A glorious day.

Posted on April 2, 2016 by luckyotter

april_2_3

Glorious can’t even begin to describe today. I woke up in a good mood, and decided to run a few errands, but the weather was so pretty and sunny (though a bit blustery) and everything was blooming. The first thing I heard outside my house was a cacophony of birds. Woodland animals are beginning to make their way our of their winter hiding places, and there’s a family of groundhogs that live behind my house, and over the last few days I’ve seen standing in the backyard, sniffing the air on their little hind legs.

(Click all images to enlarge).

A small green pond on the property of the meditation center, peeking through trees. The trees here are still mostly bare because it’s so high up.

I couldn’t help but feel a little overcome by all the beauty surrounding me, so I decided to make a day of it and take a lone road trip over to Black Mountain, where there is a free meditation center I sometimes go to. The drive into the mountains is beautiful. NC-Highway 9 winds gently through the foothills of the Black Mountains, slowly ascending. I rolled my windows down and listened to music as I drove. Birds sang and the trees that are no longer bare showed every color of the rainbow, and I mean EVERY color.

Some sort of berries on an ornamental tree.

I tried to capture the “iridescent fall colors” here but I’m not sure I succeeded.

I don’t know if anyone has noticed this, but I have (and wrote about it last year too). April can sometimes look a lot like mid-October. All the fall colors are there, as the trees begin to put out leaves, but before the chlorophyll that turns them green kicks in. The reverse process happens in the fall–the leaves change colors because they lose chlorophyll as the days become shorter and cooler. The spring “fall” colors correspond exactly to the colors seen in the fall, but are a little more muted and have a kind of translucence to them. But it doesn’t end there. There are pink, white, yellow and lilac blossoms everywhere, and the newly leafed trees contain a wonderful pale green iridescence that’s not present any other time of the year.

I used to prefer the fall when I was younger, but can’t see how I ever did. In my opinion, fall is lame in comparison. No matter how pretty autumn trees are, you know everything’s dying, and winter is not far away. The colors in the fall also seem sadder and more somber, shading more into deep purples and browns, at least where I live.

Some formal gardens near my house, on the way home.

On the street where I live.

Now I’ve got to go listen to U2’s “Beautiful Day,” because it truly was a beautiful day, and I just feel so relaxed and good right now.

Sunrise.

Posted on March 28, 2016 by luckyotter

I took this on the way to work this morning.

sunrise

Look who just moved into my garden.

Posted on March 23, 2016 by luckyotter

Even though I’m Christian (Catholic), I always liked Buddhism and I have a small collection of Buddhas around my house, kept for decorative purposes. They also remind me to stay mindful. I don’t feel like there’s anything wrong with or that it’s sinful. I appreciate many religions. I have a tiny laughing Buddha made of ivory that seems to keep one particular houseplant healthy (I wrote about that in this post), and today in the mail I received an awesome blue glazed concrete Garden Buddha. He’s about 12 inches tall.

garden_buddha2

I found the perfect spot for him under a rosebush, and he looks very much at home there keeping company with my St. Francis of Assisi garden figure (St. Francis is my favorite saint because of his love for animals). Unfortunately, he lost his left hand sometime during the winter, when a pane of glass fell out of an upstairs window and shattered on top of him, slicing off his hand. His head had a gash in it too, but I was able to repair it using some mortar. I can’t re-attach the hand. Oh well.

garden_buddha3
They all look like they’re having a meeting.

Now I just need to get the garden cleaned up and some flowers planted and I’ll be all set!

The very large dragonfly you see in the photos is not real. There are three of them in my garden.

garden_buddha1

Tree with ivy.

Posted on March 17, 2016 by luckyotter

tree_2

I liked the look of this tree covered with ivy so I took a picture of it with my phone. I was standing directly underneath of it looking up, which makes its trunk look much bigger than it really is.

My favorite part about having a Smartphone is being able to take pictures whenever I want and having them immediately. Instant gratification!

March sunset.

Posted on March 15, 2016 by luckyotter

I was driving home from my therapy session tonight and saw the most spectacular sunset behind the rain clouds. I couldn’t pull over but got a picture anyway (I do NOT recommend doing this while driving!)

Moments later, the rain cleared, and I was able to get a shot of the pink undersides of the clouds, before it disappeared (I pulled over to take the second one).

march_sunset2