here comes the sun!!

after five hours of additional rain on sunday

we have finally begun to dry out from the 8 1/2 inches of rain

we received within six days.

i cannot stress how fortunate we feel that we were spared

the brunt of the storm.

so many coloradans have lost their homes

or sustained considerable damage

and have no flood insurance to help them recover.

there have been heroic rescues,

athletic teams turned out in force to assist in cleanup,

along with kind and generous gifts of apprepreciation

in the form of meals, hot beverages, and plates of cookies

from local citizens to law enforcement officers and the national guard personnel

who gave tirelessly of their time over the past many days.

i’d like to add my own

**thank you** —

it was comforting to know you were there.

********

although we sustained no flood damage,

we did have animals who spent many a wet and chilly night

slogging through the mud with minimal attention

other than daily feeding and pen cleaning.

sara declared a “horse brushing party” on tuesday,

and a diligent team of three brought each horse and donkey

into the “spa” for a good grooming!

thanks, sara, jill, and kristi!!

johnny walker and i were present in the capacity

of photographer and carrot-doler.

first came sunny and si gaoithe.

although it would have taken a hosing to rinse the mud off completely,

no one was game for an additional drop of water to hit the ground!

then came tireachan and rose.

there were no complaints.

since johnny and i were trudging across the yard to do other things

between sets, i accidentally missed a couple after this.*

when i got back it was meadbh and otis.

last, but not least, was sam.

*since i was a bit perplexed at having missed my chance at giving some love

to a couple of herd members,

jill-the-good-sport went and and haltered them and brought them back in to see me:

cormac mac airt

and caoinlean.

sara tossed in a gratuitious shot of sam as well.

********

to be honest, if you want to be a member of this family you must be able to take a little ribbing…

(oof…  ouch.)

we had the sunday potluck that evening, due to weather delay.

the girls had a great time giving me the business over my green tights.

sara took off with her kermit the frog routine,

and jill snickeringly referred to me as elphaba.

gosh, i love them!

even logan got into the act with johnny walker:

ah, ha.

that’s ok–  i got even.

keep in mind that although the sun was shining, we had just gotten

8 1/2 inches of rain,

some of which remained in the chair cushions:

in this case, he who laughs last really has sore ribs.

********

what follows are excerpts from a series of what rehab patients do

when they sit around and get antsy while everyone else is off being busy:

either take shameless self-photos or alter existing photos.

me in my “cocoon of comfort”–

a borrowed recliner with a deep, plush sheepskin that enables

me to sleep through the night pain-free.

johnny walker and i posing during the dance competition.

a tree by the sea photo from this past summer that i altered with autopainter HD on the iPad,

and numerous alterations of a photo of miss rose that you’ve already seen:

********

coming up soon (tomorrow, i hope):

are you passionate about color?

do you love the idea of painting with abandon (as in, making no mistakes)?

could you benefit from a shift in perspective that would bring freedom, enthusiasm,

creativity and PLAY back into your life?

if so,

tune in here.

i have a great idea for you!!