I got an email from my friend Annie today with this photo in it.  Under the photo were the words “Ready and Waiting.”  I had to smile because Annie had invited four friends and myself to a tea party.  A tea party for grown up ladies.  Oh my!  Here’s the photo she sent of the table set for the party.

Who could possibly say no to such an invitation?  Imagine the table is set.  The guests arrive.  We are introduced and spend the afternoon just talking and nibbling on goodies.  Annie set the table with her lovely English china.  This china has an interesting story connected with it.  The china has been sent to her piece by fragile  piece, wrapped with loving care by a friend in Australia.  How can such fragile things stand the journey?  First from England to Australia; then from Australia to Annie’s home in San Diego.

Her friend seemed present as Annie told us the story.  How nice to be remembered this way.

I hadn’t met the other guests guests, but just sit six women around a beautiful table loaded with goodies and hot tea and they quickly become friends.

Women used to do this often.  Today, at least where I live, it’s hardly done at all.  Judging from my pleasure, it should be done more often.  If not with the special china, then in the garden with the flowers around.  It’s just a pleasant time to get together and get to know each other.

Thanks Annie.  It was a very special day.

Marilynne

You can read more about Annie by clicking on the Guest Blogger Category.

Linda Mau is a well-known clay artist in the San Francisco Bay area.  She has made some marvelously creative things.  You can see more of her very professional work at http://lmau.com .  Linda  is also my sister-in-law.  Her clay art is simply stunning.

When Linda, allows me to own something she has created, I know it’s bound to be very special.  Here are a selection of small treasures she’s given me.  Most of them are useful as well.  There’s nothing big here because it had to travel home in a suitcase or come through the mail.

The strawberry bowl is designed to show off the berries as well as hold them.  It’s one of my favorites.

The lady usually sits among my flowers

The photo doesn’t show her beautiful color well.  She’s a lovely medium brown and looks so pretty in my garden.  Linda gave her to my mother, and when we were closing my mother’s home, I took the lady home with me.

A paper bowl, two hearts, and a butterfly of a dish

I never dreamed so much could be made of paper.  This little bowl has bits of flowers and such made into the paper.  It once had a handle of twigs.  The gray heart honors Scott and Tina’s wedding day. The white heart is a pin, beautiful in its simplicity.   The turquoise blue dish is another favorite.  It is so light and delicate you think you’ll break it if you touch it, but it’s strong.

This tray was destined for the garbage can. It's a failed experiment, but I love it.

On this tray are two silver bells from my mother-in-law’s collection, a trinket from my daughter Lisa, and a broken bit of honeycomb.  They rest on a fancy napkin given me by another daughter.  Linda planned to throw the tray  away because the experiment didn’t work.  The clay edges were crumbling off the wire on the edges.  I loved it with its imperfections and begged to be allowed to rescue it from the trash.

The blue tea box keeps my tea bags fresh. A square for used bags is ready next to it.

The last time I visited, Linda gave me a lovely tea caddy.  It’s exactly the right shape and size for the tea bags.

Find out more about Linda’s art and where you can see it at http://lmau.com .  Here are more references to her work

• http://ceramicartsdaily.org/methods-techniques/paper-clay-and-steel-combining-three-disparate-materials-to-create-strong-yet-lightweight-ceramic-sculpture/?floater=99
• http://www.ovcag.org/_shows/_past_2006/2006-29-APR/arles_gallery/index.html (Scroll to her name)
• http://www.pvarts.org/sculptureis09/artwork?page=2&order=field_artist_value&sort=asc

Marilynne

Annie sent me an update on Chica’s progress.

Here they are, housemates and playmates — hangin’ out together.  BooBoo, the cat (Apex predator and King-of-the Household, is looking after newly spayed Chica.  BooB00 probably does not understand why Chica isn’t her usual zippy self.  I’m keeping her slowed down with pain/sedation pills 4x a day.  Chica spent last night in bed with me.  We both thought it was great.  I brought her upstairs because I thought if she wanted to go out in the middle of the night I wanted to hear her.  She didn’t.  She loved being under the covers.  I did, too, but I didn’t get enough sleep.  I kept waking up to check on her.

BooBoo hanging with Chica

Annie’s Blogging about Chica

Our guest blogger today is my friend Annie Holmes.  Her darling little Chica has had surgery.  Chica is so little, I asked Annie if the vet had performed microsurgery on her.

Update on Chica

Here is six-month-old Chica — still intact.  Tomorrow morning at 8 AM I will deliver her to the vet and she will be spayed.  We will all be worried sick about her until we know she will be all right.   Handsome feels the same way.  Just look at him.  If anything happened to her, he would die of a broken heart.  He adores her so.

Chica knows lots of words now.  She knows let’s go, come, stay, sit, Dudley, Annie, cookie, drink of water, walk, ride in the car, Handsome, dog food, go upstairs, get into bed, dog park and some others I can’t remember at the moment.  She loves her toys.  Everything is a toy to her, especially Handsome and Dudley’s slippers.

Vet says no food after ten.  Not to worry.  Everyone in this house is in bed by 9 PM.

Handsome watches over his friend Chica

Surgery Day

I took Chica in at 8 AM. The surgery was around noon.  I just brought her home at 3:30 this afternoon. She’s right here beside me in her little cat-carrier hideout. She’s a tired puppy. She also had her four canine teeth taken out, so her mouth is sore as well as her belly.  Gosh, I hope she doesn’t remember any of it.  She’s sedated and somewhat groggy, but has welcomed a few drops of water.  I have pain pills, and antibiotic stuff for her. She seemed more alert before I drove her home.   I think she knows she’s home now.  Her eyes keep drifting down.  Both BooBoo [the cat] and Handsome are right here, motionless and quiet, as close as they can get, keeping vigil.  Along with me.

Day After Surgery

She walks!  She eats, she pees.   She’s making little tiny frustrated squeaking noises at her ball-with-the-treat-stuffed-inside. She can’t pick it up because she has no canines at present. She has a good appetite and I was able to get both the pain meds and the antibiotic stuff aboard with a bit of thin-sliced roast beef.  Handsome was curious at first, and now is quite gentle with her.  He’s probably happy she isn’t using those lost canines on him anymore.  She got her first rabies shot yesterday, along with everything else, so I am writing a check to send with the form to Animal Services.

Chica  got so quiet  I just had to peek around the desk to see where she was, and she is asleep in her lair (BooBoo’s cat carrier).  That thing is her refuge, her “safe place.”  She crawls under that (now stinky) old quilted silk jacket and goes fast asleep.  The vet’s office just called to see how she is and I said she seems fine.   Here she is in her lair.   Chica has her own page on the vet’s website.

Chica feels safe snuggled with an old silk coat, in her carrier

Later

Chica seems just fine now. She’s come out of her hideaway and curled up with Handsome. Now when she goes to the dog park, she won’t be talking about boys with the young pups, she’ll be with the old ladies talking about her operation.

If you want to read all of Annie’s blogs, just choose the Category “Guest Bloggers” and you can see them.  Thanks for stopping by.

Marilynne