20 Forthlin Road

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 The other night I saw a movie about John Lennon. It was called “Nowhere Boy”. I have been on a Beatle high ever since. I love being on a Beatle high. Don’t you think it is wonderful to have a passion? Like for me, one of mine is The Beatles. I have many passions. But yeah, back to The Beatles, I love ‘em. Can’t get enough of ‘em. I can talk about them for hours. Fortunately for me, I was born into a pack of Beatle lovers so we have lots of people to share our passion. That is a beautiful thing.

A few years ago, we packed our bags and flew off to Liverpool. That is how passionate we are about ‘our boys’. Well, we didn’t exactly fly to Liverpool. We flew to London first, then, took a train trip up to Liverpool. The city’s name, Liverpool, sounds ugly doesn’t it? I expected a disagreeable place. That does not describe the city at all. In fact, it is an attractive seaside city planted amid gentle, green rolling hills. It is a port city with an abundance of shipping and transportation bustle. And did I mention there is magic in the air?

This magic to which I refer is difficult to explain yet it hits you right in the face like a blast from a fired up amplifier. It is not a subtle thing. To see the city, to breathe the air fresh off the sea, to know this is the birthplace of John, Paul, George and Ringo during World War II, there is no denying that something abides called destiny, kismet, fate or whatever you wish to call it. Do you believe in coincidence? I do not.

We took a tour called The Beatle Experience that left from the Liverpool waterfront at the Albert Dock. There we met many others like us of similar passion. There were a few Americans but lots of British, French, and Germans.

I had often read prior to our trip that The Beatles had financially impoverished childhoods. They did not really. George and Ringo had it rougher than John and Paul but none were what I would call living in poverty. As youths, George and Ringo lived in what are called ‘two up, two down’ small flats with their families. Their quarters were cramped but not unfortunate. John at Mendips and Paul at 20 Forthlin Road had larger, more comfortable homes. Both John and Paul went to an architecturally mesmerizing private school and wore “Harry Potteresque” type uniforms.

Probably the most interesting thing that happened to me while on this tour occurred at 20 Forthlin Road, Paul’s childhood home. The house is open for tours. As we were leaving through the front door, a big cat ran up to me from the yard. He ran up to ME. It is a small thing but what are the odds? Out of all of those people, that cat wanted ME. Do you believe in coincidence? I do not. It is a beautiful thing.

With a Little Help from my Friends

Jacob has his own doll and he likes it. Lately, he has been playing with his doll quite a bit. His doll is Sylvester. Sylvester looks like Jake a little but Jake is cuter, of course. :)

I do not usually get large segments of time to do house work so I play 'catch as catch can' when it comes to house work. However, I always make a point of doing it. It just doesn't get done all at the same time. Okay, last night, I was vacuuming.

I talk a lot to my kitten boys. We have long chats. Anyone with pets understands this. These conversations are often funny. I should record our conversations. Last night, in between jaunts of vacumming, I was telling them how I really would appreciate it if they would help more around the house. I even suggested to Jake that maybe he could get a 'modeling' job since he is so darn beautiful. Of course, Nigel, Ollie, and Henry immediately got jealous so I had to convince them they were model quality too and could in fact go with him when auditioning for commercials and what not. Henry said he could drive as we had been out in the car a lot together lately. He thinks he has the driving thing down.

So what is all of this leading to? This morning as I was walking past the vacuum where I left it last night, someone (Jake) had propped up Sy against it. I am pretty sure Jake told him to 'get to vacuuming' because no way in heck is a 'real cat' going to work but 'mom needs help around here'.

When I walked back past it about 30 minutes later, it looked like this.

I guess Sy passed out from exhaustion already.

Lights, Camera, Action!

I have mentioned more than a few times that we are avid readers and we have a deep love of movies especially ones based on books. Do you find it immensely intriguing how you can love the same book genre or movie genre as one person yet completely dislike another genre they like?  For example, one sister and I have total fascination for one book genre while my other sister rolls her eyes at us when we get to talking in animated tones about them. Yet that same sister and I have the love of another genre between us that we can completely relate to with each other. One of my sisters and I have a big month coming up in November. Every week promises to bring some fun our way with our books and movies. The beauty of it is we can use it to celebrate our birthdays too. I even plan to win a prize!!! The last time we went to one of these big festivals, she and I were the only two people in the ENTIRE theatre who knew the answers to the prize questions. We both have been studying in anticipation of this years prize. Wish us luck!!!

The Me of Now and The She of Then

I often wish I could go back in time and speak to the girl I was at 16. She of then needed me of now. She of then could have benefited from my years of experience. She had no one to provide insight to her. Sure, she had people who cared about her that offered much pragmatic advice. She did not need pragmatic advice. She was different. Pragmatic advice would never do for her but she did not know that then.


When she was just a girl


She expected the world


But it flew away from her reach so


She ran away in her sleep


And dreamed of paradise every time she closed her eyes.~”Paradise” Coldplay

I dream of visiting her across the years and walking through the front door to find her listening to her music. Would she know who I was? I do not think she would. She would like me. I would love her. She would listen to me attentively. Even she in her wide-eyed innocence would grasp the weight of what I would share with her. She would know that it could save her. She of then wished for me of now but she did not know it was me of now that she was wishing for then.

When she was just a girl


She expected the world


But it flew away from her reach


And the bullets catch in her teeth


Life goes on, it gets so heavy


The wheel breaks the butterfly~ “Paradise” Coldplay


What would the me of now say to the she of then that could save her? What the me of now would have told her is different from what the me of 10 years ago would have said. The me of now would tell her if the me of now could have that it is understandable not to know what to do with your life at 16 because you do not know yourself then. Me of now would tell her that she will still not know herself at 30 or 40 or 50 even. She will never completely ever know herself. No one ever does. It is a mystery that cannot be known in this world but the important thing is to make your life beautiful and never, ever waste a single second on anything less because this could be paradise.

This or That?

Which do you suppose is more comfy? This?

Or that?

I can barely bring myself to look at him sleeping on that window ledge. Poor little pitiful baby. Can you believe he stayed outside on my patio for 3 weeks before I took him in??? I cannot believe it. I do remember being exremely worried about his precious soul. I had to watch him for a time though to make sure he did not exhibit any bad signs of disease before bringing him in and remember I was getting out of the 'cat business'. Famous last words, right? I never will forget seeing him for the first time out on that patio that Saturday morning when I went out to feed the ferals. It is raining tonight. I am so glad he has a comfy, dry bed!

Repurposing Cat Litter Boxes

I have a problem with clutter. My kitchen table is too near the front door and I have a tendency to walk in and dump everything on it. It bothers me but I never stop doing it. Okay, the kitchen table is clean now. Nothing is on it except what is supposed to be there.

Second problem, I love magazines. Magazines can get out of control quickly. Yesterday, I looked down at this and had an idea! I like to repurpose. We use lots of this product around here so I needed to figure out a way to repurpose these boxes.

Admittedly, I could have done a much better job but this was sort of my prototype. Next time, and there will be a next time, the end result will be more "professional" shall we say.

 I made one of these type boxes we use at the library for magazines except mine is not that faux woodgrain stuff often found in the library archives. I tried to amp mine up a little bit. It is not great but it works. It serves its purpose.

I could have used a brayer to smooth out the sides a little but didn't. I am not so much into details, ya know? I think I am what is called a '30 thousand feet' person. My boss knows this trait about me. He knows I can fix almost any major issue but do not give me the job of looking for 33 cents because it will never get found. I would rather watch paint dry than mess with details. I could never be a cataloguer.

The magazines are organized and maybe Nigel cannot chew on them so easily. I put some of my little quilted cats by it to make it look better. Next time, I will finish out the inside of the box or maybe paint it even. There are lots of options. Try it if you have a problem with clutter like I do (did).

My Little Peach, Henri

Having mentioned it previously, I never discuss Henri that much...not sure why though. Maybe it is because he is just always so good. You know he had that low self esteem thing going on and all? Odd, I know, for a cat to have low self esteem but I think it stems from him initially starting out in life running with a pack. He has a sweet spirit and is content to linger behind while everyone else gets their needs met before him. Poor Henri. Long story short here. Henri came down with what I call 'gunchy skin disease'.

He is the second cat I have had that has skin allergies. I was never surprised that Max had them. Max was a purebred and often they have issues. Now don't go thinking that I would ever go out and buy a purebred because I wouldn't. Those that need to buy can buy. But it is my mission to 'save' those that otherwise would not know love. Poor little Maxie was a purebred bought by a family that decided that he was 'demon possessed'. You think I kid but I do not. Some people are weird. Anyway due to his playfulness and feistiness, he was abandoned and in comes me to the rescue. I took the little 'demon possessed' creature right into my home without fear or hesitation. You know what? That demon never, ever reared its scarey head around me. All I ever saw was my playful, out of control Maxie. Well, all of that was to say, yes, it was not a surprise that Max had skin issues.

But my Henri is not a purebred. He is a red tabby. They are hardy. Somehow though that boy has always had skin issues and lately they got bunches worse. He and I had to visit the dermatologist multiple times. We have spent major quality time together lately driving hither and yon. We have long discussions during these drives. We talk music and we listen to music. You know what else? Henri knows without doubt that his mom loves him now. He runs to me first when I walk in the door. He no longer lingers back to let the others reach me before him. He runs right up with that eager look in his eyes as if he is saying "See mom? The one you love so much is here to meet you." It fills my heart with joy to see him so happy and confident. Mission accomplished!

Only a Blissful Glimpse

Have you ever experienced an inkling of bliss? I am sure you know the experience I am talking about. The type of experience that feels like you just caught a glimpse of an angel’s wing or that you just tasted ambrosia. I am describing one of those most rare occasions that happens once or twice in a lucky person’s lifetime when he feels as if his heart might explode in a flood of fragile, indescribable happiness.

It is when you think you could die at that very instant in time as a completely fulfilled person never, ever wishing for anything more than what you have already received. It is an overflowing feeling yet at the same time misty, delicate and mercurial. The more you cling to it, the quicker it vanishes. When the sun rises high, shining bright blinding light on those exquisite raindrops of joy dripping from your heart, the mist evaporates. That level of bliss does not linger. It is a temporal gift. At most, it will last a couple of hours maybe half a day if you are uncommonly fortunate. But when it happens to you, you swear that Heaven’s door just opened and you caught a brief sight of what eternity holds. 

Woman With Cat

Look at this vintage picture of a lady holding her cat while wearing only her slip. It is kind of weird. Well, more than kind of...a whole lot of. That is pretty dangerous behavior, I think. Little Jacob or Nigel would scratch me up. Ollie or Henry would not because they are sweet kittens. Those two rarely extend their claws ever. Not that Nigel and Little Jacob are not sweet. They are. But those two boys are rowdy and unpredictable. When my boys are playing and biting me, if I act like it is hurting a lot by crying 'oh stop it, that so hurts', all of them will bite softer. Then they will look at me as if asking 'There. Is that better?' Sweet kitten boys. I do love them so.

Lost Skills Found

Jake has more songs of his own than any one cat could ever possibly shake a stick at. His latest is "In Love With a Girl" by Gavin Degraw. Boy loves me for giving him a home and lots and lots of fun toys. No more sleeping on the hard windowsill ever again for the little boy. He loves a tempurpedic bed too. I couldn't find any songs about that though...yet. Plus, I brushed off dusty photoshop.

Done and Done

The dining room chair reupholstery project is complete!