Wishing Upon A Star

July 11 -- Cajun Spice

I decided to try the pepper on the plants to keep the squirrels away. The problem was I didn’t have any pepper, but I did have a good size jar of Cajun seasoning. Now it seemed logical that Cajun seasoning would be full of hot spices that would do the trick. This jar had been sitting in the cabinet for several years and had barely been used and this was a way to put it to good use.

Well…

Cajun seasoning does seem to deter squirrels. I don’t think I took some other factors into account when I concocted this plan, however. The biggest factor is the wind.

The balcony is off my bedroom. The balcony doors provide the only ventilation, as there is no window in the bedroom. Cajun seasoning is pungent. The wind was apparently blowing from east to west, ALL NIGHT.

My eyes were actually tearing and burning for a while. It’s a wonder that I didn’t dream of New Orleans, blackened catfish and Zydeco music all night. It was actually strong enough to wake me up a couple of times during the night.

But I think it was worth it, haven’t seen a single squirrel all day.

Why is it that the weekends just sail by? I really could have used a lot more time to pull my act together here. I had gotten on a roll as far as straightening and organizing is concerned, and having another day to continue would have been a help.

Now I’m back into the work routine, and even though I’m on an abbreviated schedule, I don’t seem to have a heck of a lot of momentum when I get home. I find so many fun ways to piddle away my time.

I need to plan a reason to have company come over, that really motivates me to clean and get things all spiffy.

For some reason I was absolutely beyond exhausted when I got home from work this afternoon. I sat down to watch a crafts show on t.v. and totally conked out. When I woke up and hour later I still felt wiped out and actually went to bed and slept for another two hours.

I rarely do that. I used to have weeks when I would go and go, till finally on a Friday afternoon I’d be so tired that I’d go home and crash at three in the afternoon and not get up till noon on Saturday. I haven’t had the need to do that in a very long time, but something happened today. Quite mystifying.

I miss not hearing from my Internet friend, Michael. He’s been in Europe for a week now, and doesn’t have ISP access. It’s strange, knowing I won’t be hearing from him. Not that he’s a reliable correspondent when he’s in the country. He’s sporadic at best, sort of feast or famine. But I’m always happy when I hear from him because he’s smart, interesting and leads a life I envy (which pisses him off to hear).

He lives in New York City and is a journalist and teacher. He gets to go to all sorts of glittery events and meet people from this other world that we mortals never see. He hates it when I say things like that, but that’s how it strikes me. His life is filled with places like Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall, mine with dingy classrooms. He says I only see the glitz, (which is true) and that his life is often not what I think it is.

Probably, but it is more interesting than what I do on a day to day basis.

We’ve been friends for nearly two years and, yes, we have had the chance to meet. We did last summer when I went to New York for my annual theatre fix. We hit it off well in person, and meeting did not wreck our friendship. I had experienced considerable angst deciding whether or not we should meet. I didn’t want it to destroy what was an enjoyable correspondence.

In any case, I miss not hearing from him now.

For any rubber stampers or scrapbookers who are reading this, go check out this site. This journal keeper found a scrapbook with old telegrams in it, and they are just fascinating to read. Now I want to know more about who she was and how she answered the telegrams!

King Henry the Eighth has a couple of interesting anniversaries today. According to The Daily Holiday it is:

"QUIT IT, KING HENRY, DAY

This is the anniversary of the sixth and last wedding of England's Henry VIII, on July 12, 1543! And surprise, surprise: This one actually worked out - finally, King Harry quit his career as an eternal bridegroom!

His sixth bride was the third named "Catherine" - this one was Catherine Parr. After the marriage, she squeaked through a charge of heresy and survived to become Henry's widow. Really.

Henry's last wife did well all around, it seems. For instance, here's a warm letter written to her by the young Princess Elizabeth in late July of 1548

Maybe you've heard a nifty little mnemonic device for remembering the order of Henry's marriages to - ready? - Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard, and Catherine Parr (whew!)

Anyway, here it is: "divorced, beheaded, died; divorced, beheaded, survived."

And from Daily Trivia

"St. Miles Partridge once played dice with Henry VIII for the bells of St. Paul's church, won, and collected the bells."
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