INDEPENDENCE DAY

 After nearly two weeks without an Internet connection, I finally got a connection this morning. Miracle! I'll try to write this post quickly, in case the Gods of Technology heard me and take it away.

Also, I have such severe pain in my right arm that I can hardly type. I don't want to give a medical update, because it is dismal and my depression is profound. No need for alarm. I'm hanging on by a thin thread, but I'll be damned if I let go.

I'm still at Signature in Jamestown.

Well, with Internet I can order some food from Walmart this week. The highlite (light?) of my dreary existence.

I have a lot to say, but I'll drastically condense. July has arrived. It's in the 90s here, between endless thunderstorms. There was a tornado warning and power outage a few nights ago. No damage.

I hope everyone has a joyous holiday weekend. Be thankful for the positive things you have. They are precious.

I had this doggie for many years. He had an outfit for every month. When I moved to Tennessee, the outfits were there...but the dog was missing.

Jon, patriotic in Texas

Another piano video. These are 

my variations on "When Johnny Comes Marching Home". The photos are not AI, they're original from the Civil War.

Lousy audio  but it's an old tape.

Jon  💙

Just received some bad news from insurance....just what I need to destroy my weekend.

P.S.It's Friday night and another severe storm is here. So much lightning, no need for fireworks.

P.S AGAIN

I think I finally have a much-needed appt. with my oncologist  next week (after nearly two months).

RETURN

 

I thoroughly enjoyed my brief hiatus and was admittedly delighted to be blog-free. The feeling of emancipation was so invigorating that it has inspired me to consider dumping this blog permanently.

My sole reason for hanging around blogland is because I have a genuine affection for those few people who still like me. I can count them on the fingers of one hand. And maybe some toes.

Another reason I hang around here is because it irritates the miserable little boogers who loathe me but still regularly visit my blog.
I know they're there. I can hear them breathing......and growling with subconscious envy.....

Just ignore my sarcasm. Underneath all the vile layers, I'm a sweetheart.


So, what did I do on my recent hiatus?
Well, I didn't go too far - - but I went far enough. Maybe I went all the way.
Try to read between the lines and ponder.

It's July? Already??
It sure doesn't feel like July. In West Texas it would be sunny and blazing hot. Same thing in Southern California.

Here in the forests and crevices of rural Tennessee it's surprisingly cool. This morning in the pre-dawn mists it almost felt like autumn.
Humidity, rain, dampness...
The sun is predicted to make an appearance later today and tomorrow. I won't hold my breath waiting for it.

So - what are my plans for Independence Day? Nothing much. No parades. No barbecues or picnics. No fireworks. I'll probably make hot dogs and pretend they're steaks.
And if I'm feeling patriotic, I just might read the Declaration of Independence to my three cats.

 The little butterball on the sofa is Scruffy

Scruffy has been sick for weeks. I first suspected severe asthma. Now I'm thinking it's a respiratory infection. I actually know quite a lot about sick cats. I got a crash course in cat care in Texas when I unwittingly inherited twenty cats  that my neighbor abandoned when she moved. It was one of the most traumatic experiences of my entire life (and, believe me, I've had plenty).

As for Scruffy - I'm presently giving her vaporizers, L-Lysine supplements, and TLC. She had an appetite this morning, which is encouraging.

 Scruffy this morning

As for me - it's all negatives. I'm in my brooding Heathcliff mood. I feel lethargic, wasted, depressed. As if I'm moving in SloMo.....or treading quicksand.

What about my Zazzle store?
It hasn't opened yet. I've designed nearly 300 items so far. No lie. 291 to be exact. But I want to design more. I have lots of ideas. I need more categories, more collections. If nothing else, I'm having fun. More about this later.

So, what's happened to Part Three of my infamous interview?
I removed it from my blog. At least temporarily. There are times when I feel that I reveal too much to unsuspecting  strangers.

Have a super Independence Day.
America will celebrate her 241st birthday tomorrow (if my calculations are correct).
Anyway, this country is one of the few things left that's older than myself. *sigh*


I took that header photo in Texas.

 

RUMBLING FOURTH

This post is going to be bland and uninteresting. You're forewarned. I suppose I need a break after writing two good posts (Wild Ride 
and Echos of Distant Summers).

I haven't written anything caustic, controversial, or nerve wracking in over a week. I figured I'd give everyone a breather.

I just heard a big collective sigh of relief from my apprehensive readers - - who are sweating blood and have bitten their fingernails down to the quick.


Rumbling Fourth?

Yup. The thunder is rumbling tonight as I write this and had been intermittently rumbling all through Independence Day. There was a severe storm warning just as I was eating my 4th of July dinner. Now, late in the evening, an eerie fog has rolled in and it's raining furiously with growls and groans of thunder. No fireworks tonight, except those provided by Mother Nature.....
.....or Father Nature, if you want to be politically correct.

I've been in Tennessee well over a year and a half, and have never felt the humidity more ruthlessly intense. This was a cheerless and miserable holiday.

Despite the storms, I had a seedless watermelon

So, how did I spend my cheerlessly miserable holiday? Working around the house, cursing the rain, watching the weeds grow, swatting insolent wasps and flies, and dealing with three rambunctious cats - who have been intent on chasing a hapless but quick and evasive mouse.

After an extremely long period of depression, indifference, and an I-don't-give-a-crap attitude, I'm finally making the house look decent and livable - - or as livable as a small place with a trio of felines can look.

 The weeds yield curious flowers

I spent part of the afternoon going through my sizeable collection of piano music and arranging it on shelves - - - rejoicing over the ones the movers didn't "lose" and lamenting over those I'll never see again. 

Most of my personal music manuscripts are intact (I think about a dozen are missing).

All of the piano music that had belonged to my mother and grandmother is gone. Well over 100 pieces - mostly first editions. This loss, to me, is a death.

I haven't touched either of my pianos since I moved here. I've been too depressed. They are battered and out of tune - much like myself. This has been my longest absence from the keyboard. Ever.

It is difficult to convey the fact that music once was my entire life. The piano, in essence, was my spouse. I was a professional. I had an extremely vast repertoire. I seldom write about this on my blog because - - I feel so completely disconnected from my musical past. 

Rather than bore you with my words, I'll bore you with some photos.

 This is my oldest piano, which my parents bought when I was ten. It's the piano that my mom always played, and the one on which she gave me lessons.

 An old photo of my mom by that same piano.

Here's a bunch of my music manuscripts, photographed yesterday afternoon. Please try to contain your excitement.

 Some of my Schirmer editions

 I have a huge collection of the G. Henle Verlag editions......and the Edition Peters.....

 

....and, of course, the colorful International Music Company editions

 My cat Scratch, completely overwhelmed by the music, finally rolled over and went to sleep.



I appreciated all your comments on my previous post. I usually like to respond to them, but this time I was too lazy.
Don't be duped by my indifference - - I still love you.