Category Archives: Emily

Emily, Furry Children, Hobbits, Stuff & Things, Where I create

Taking care of my familiar…

April 2, 2021 horatioandemily 1 Comment

Emily and I are currently waiting in Shelley (my frankencar) outside the vet’s office.

We are just here for her yearly checkup & vax update. A year ago, she had her right, lower fang removed due to decay & the only slight concern I have is that she might be a li’l chubby now…but aren’t we all?

After we close at 5pm today, I’m off for a 3-day weekend (WOOT!)

With this guy:

I feel possibilities ahead. It’s more than just spring…um…springing. it’s the potential hiatus from *waves around* all of the past year/few years.

The great staff at Bayside Vet in Vallejo just came out and got Emily. The folks here are excellent…one of the Vet Techs works p/t at my library and I love knowing someone so well, who will watch out for my baby.

This is where I brought my Boys when it was time for them to go…It was a sad, but beautiful, experience thanks to the staff here at Bayside.

The weather here in Vallejo, CA is perfect…sunny with the river breeze.

It will be warmer in Woodbridge (it most always is), but we might road trip on one of my THREE days off (but I repeat myself) to the coast, perhaps.

OK! So Emily is done here and it’s time to take her home.

She has a clean bill of health, besides a little too much weight. She was 11lbs last year & she’s up to 13lbs now. I just have to feed her twice a day instead of leaving food out for her constantly.

Happy Friday!

Emily, Furry Children, Journal 52, postcards

Guess who’s back…back again…

April 1, 2021 horatioandemily 1 Comment

I have not posted a thing for over 4 months and I’d say that’s not like me, but it TOTALLY is. I haven’t blogged or made any art for about that long. I’m not sure what has been holding me back, but I suspect it has to do with *waves in all directions* all of this.

Postcard from spring 2017 swap with iHanna.nu

So…I’m participating in Effy Wild’s Artfully Wild Blog Along this year to put myself back into the creative zone.

There is nobody quite like Effy to give me a “gentle” nudge towards a healthier Art Practice. I began with Effy’s teachings in Journal 52 2018. I jumped to BOD in 2019, and this is my 2nd year in Moonshine.

I have done next to nothing but lurk on the pages for this year so far, but I am a firm believer in starting where you are, so…April it is.

I received my Moderna vax last Thursday and I have to note the weight that feels lifted from my shoulders about it is NOT missed.

My coworkers have all received their first shots at least, and I feel much safer about our whole library team because of that fact.

My Love, Matt, received his shot the same day I did, but he’s team Pfizer.

My career, Librarian Supreme, is running along nicely, now that we have a new (MUCH better) Supervisor. My former BOSS* and I are like oil & water.

The services we can provide are limited compared to pre-Covid times, but we do all the things we can for folks, and we are preparing for the future-times when we can do Programs and Outreach again.

My work weeks are spent with this character…She makes me laugh every day.

Work weeks include 40hrs of Librarian goodness, not enough sleep, and good times with my little roomate family (Amy and her kids: Erik and Angelina)

Weekends include THIS Man:

Yep…I am pampered, fed, loved, listened to…It’s a rough life, but I think I’ve earned it.

So…here we are. Today is a good day. I had an eye Dr. appointment where they dilated my eyes, but I’ll get spiffy new specs in 2-3 weeks.

Ok…that’s enough for today…my eyeballs hurt.

Ciao,ya’ll!

*BOSS* per prison slang = Stupid Son Of a Bitch

drawing, Emily, Where I create

I live divided

October 8, 2020 horatioandemily 1 Comment

I live in downtown Vallejo, California, but I spend my non-workdays with Matt at his place outside of Lodi. CA. The two houses are over an hour apart so I do a fair bit of driving every week.

I drive up from sea level, over the hills through Suisun City, across multiple bridges over branches of the Sacramento river delta, and over to the central valley, where my heart waits for me in Woodbridge.

I am completely comfortable there. I just miss my stuff, and Emily. Matt’s cat, Katita, doesn’t like Emily at all (which is strange, because Emily is perfect) but we cut her some slack as she is partly blind and extremely set in her ways. It’s her house, ya know…

So, as I split my time, I’ve realized that I paint on the weekends, but all my paints/supplies (except what I carry on my Art Bag) are at my place, where I stay during the work week.

Thus, I am packing 2 storage bins of supplies to take to Woodbridge tomorrow night.

I’ve made a list so I can have what I need without bringing extraneous items I don’t need to use right away.

Ex: Bringing paint/canvas/stencils but not all the stuff to make candles…

This feels a bit odd to me, moving in with him in increments, but we do what we can until I get to move in for good and all.

I have been drawing, but I’ve done little art lately otherwise, but I plan to get back into it on this upcoming 3day weekend.

Other than all of the above, I am well and healing from my bicycle wreck 2.5 weeks ago. I have a scar to talk about…

Emily is doing well…she is the queen of my bedroom, where she stays for the most part. She’s not particularly interested in my roommates, so only comes out when they are gone or sleeping.

I have dear friends dealing with a myriad of issues and complexities in this crazy world right now and I’m doing my best to be there, available, for them. Meanwhile, I have been digging into some heavier traumas in my life and working through even part of them is exhausting but important to me.

I want to live my life free of the weight of these things in my past. I refuse to bury the past, as the feelings can jump out at me, appearing without warning, scaring everyone.

My mental health issues are mine, but I am able to be pretty open about it all because I generally do a superb job of keeping it all to myself. The ability to share my feelings with folks I trust is paramount to my progress.

I have a Therapist, Psychiatrist, medical team, loving friends and stellar family to talk to about all of this, and when I feel the downs, I avail myself upon them.

I am blessed and lucky.

I’ll post more art as I make it, and I’ll post my video tutorial from work as soon as it is edited.

PLEASE VOTE!!!

Art Journal, canvas 2, Emily, Stuff & Things

It’s 7:30pm…

June 15, 2019 horatioandemily Leave a comment

…and it’s basically my “Friday” night. I did the just work of the library, went to the gym (why is it always arm day?) and am now sat on my queen chair with Emily on my lap, and she is insisting that I do not move from here.

My coworker/gym partner/friend and podcaster, Sabrina (of Sabrina Monet.com) and me!

I want to paint…I took out the trash because it smelled like hair color remover (worse than a perm) and I have a renowned capacity to ignore dirty dishes, so I will sit here for a while longer (for Emily, you know…) then paint in my journals, like this:

or in my Book Of Days, like this:

Or on my new canvas, like this:

OR on one of the illustrations for my friend’s book of songs:

…so the options are open…hmm….

Welp…since I’m meeting with the author tomorrow, that decides it…

I’ll eat my leftover pizza salad (you don’t know pizza salad?! Get thee to MOD Pizza) and listen to my girl’s podcast while I make the art…have a great weekend!

Emily, Furry Children, Hobbits

Goodbye my Hobbitses

April 19, 2019 horatioandemily Leave a comment

Although this bloggy is named for the other 2 cats, my hobbitses, my Merry & Pippin were the first I committed my care to, and this morning has just been awful.

After a quick decline in health last month, where they dropped to half their fighting weight, I decided to have my boys put down as I cannot, in good conscience, let them suffer more.

I have had my hobbitses since they were 6 weeks old…for more than 12 years now. They’ve been with me though grad school and 5 different jobs. 6 apartments.

I would be absolutely bereft were it not for my Emily, and for the knowledge that my furry family may be smaller but the love is bigger than anything.

Love never dies.

Emily, Furry Children

Introductions part 2

January 26, 2013 horatioandemily Leave a comment

Emily was discovered hiding in the back of a cage (behind her sister, Domino) at the Central California SPCA in the fall of 2009. My ex and I had gone there looking for a black & white cat for him and Emily poked her beautiful face out when I looked in the cage.

She is named for Emily Star of the L. M. Montgomery books and for Sara Crewe’s doll in A Little Princess (by Frances Hodgson Burnett). Her nickname is “Pretty” and she sleeps on me at night.

Her fur is like butter and if I don’t pay enough attention to her, she will pat me with her paw as if to say, “You have a free hand there…get to petting, Lady!”

We adopted both Emily and Domino and when my ex and I broke up, he took is little psycho girl with him, and Emily lives with me. The boys can be very mean to her (especially Pippin) but she perseveres and she is Mommy’s BabyGirlKid.

She is my sweet girl and she purrs so loudly and intensely when it’s time for bed, she starts to drool and I can hear her make smacking sounds as she tries not to drip on the covers.

She is my little sweetheart. You can tell by looking at her, can’t you?

Horatio and Emily