"The Places We've Been"

 

            Over the years, we’ve taken about seven or eight vacations. When David worked as a freelance illustrator, we often couldn’t take trips because we couldn’t absorb the loss of a one week or two week’s pay on top of the cost of a vacation. Many people take for granted the paid vacation time they receive from companies; but for the self-employed, it’s an entirely different story. With our family escapes coming years apart, David never liked returning to a place we’d already stayed. A couple of times we visited friends, but most of our excursions took us to some place new to all of us. Sometimes, we stayed in Texas to enjoy local outings at Renaissance fairs, or we ventured to Galveston or Padre to worship sand and sun. A week at Big Bend National Park remains one of my favorite memories, and we fell in love with the town of Gonzales with its marvelous homes and quaint shops.

            When money and time synched up, we ventured far from home. We took Paul to Washington, D.C. to see Fonzie’s jacket and the Washington Monument, dipped into Virginia for rollercoaster rides and walks along battlefields. A trip to Georgia to stay with friends found us climbing Stone Mountain. We journeyed to San Francisco for cable cars, Height Ashbury, The Exploratorium, and Chinatown. Our stay in Seattle found us at museums one day, the Pike Place Market the next. We delighted in rolling in several feet of snow on Mount Rainier. Last year, David and I finally took our honeymoon with a trip to Ireland!

            I don’t know exactly when we began commemorating our vacations with decorations for our Christmas tree. On one trip, we longed to have some little token of our travels that didn’t cost too much and wouldn’t break on the return trip. Somehow, we settled upon an ornament. We thought it the perfect souvenir because we knew we’d take a moment to relive our trip each year as we adorned our tree. We’ve had to create some unusual mementos since we took several trips during the summer months when stores didn’t have Christmas ornaments on their shelves. The search for the ideal keepsake often became a family quest as each of us sought the finest reminder of our travels.

Copyright Elizabeth Abrams Chapman 2011

           

"Brainstorming List"

 

            Several years ago, my well of topic ideas dried up. Practically overnight, I found myself floundering for something—anything—to write about. In desperation, I sent out an impassioned plea to my friends and family on Facebook to PM me suggestions for possible blog posts. The more people responded, the more inspired I grew. I grabbed a new spiral notebook and listed topic after topic. Whenever I find myself thirsty for something different, I turn to this list.

            Every time I buy a new spiral for my drafting and crafting, I devote the first page to that brainstorming list. Most of the time, life presents me with plenty of material. Occasionally, I peruse the list, select one item, write about the subject, and cross it off my list.

            This week my substituting work landed me with classes that need a “warm body” in the room. The students, attached to Chromebooks, ask me for a bathroom pass and leave me to my own devices. Out of boredom, I tugged out my trusty spiral the other day and skimmed my list for inspiration. “Dirty Clothes” caught my eye. The next thing I knew, I crafted a fun poem for my blog. Since I’ve been on the same campus with a similar job all week, I’ve returned to my list daily. I’ve entertained myself by writing on ten different topics using a combination of poetry and personal narratives.

             I feel accomplished and satisfied each time I scratch words off the list.

           In the very back of my mind, a little nagging worry chirps, “What if you use the all?”

            I smile. I’ll do like I did so many years ago and ask friends and family to help me with a brainstorming list!

Copyright 2019 Elizabeth Abrams Chapman

“Stubborn Koi”

 

            The end of February found me rushing Koi to the vet when blood appeared in his urine. Since his incontinence demands that he don a wrap while inside, I spotted the red tinge immediately. His vet examined him, captured a clean urine sample, ran blood tests and sent us on our way. A phone call a several days later cheered me up as all of the tests came back with a healthy dog. The blood, which only happened once, could’ve been either Koi passing a bladder stone or it could have been the first sign of bladder cancer. Further tests lay out of my financial ability. His vet sent the results home with instructions to bring him back in if he declined or had more bleeding.

            In July, Koi flew effortlessly through his annual physical. His good health let us know that bladder cancer wasn’t the diagnosis. His wraps, blood free since the one time in February, reassured all of us. When the vet flipped Koi onto his back and palpitated away in search of anything, Koi didn’t even flinch. We left confident that he had passed a bladder stone six months before.

            The week of Thanksgiving, Koi’s behavior changed. He’d come into the room on his way to the back door and freeze in place. He’d ignore my verbal inquiries, and physically nudging him to continue walking to the door shifted to having to carrying him outside. He’d stand in one place straining to urinate. Thanksgiving night, he vomit, and his bowls changed to diarrhea. The next day, his straining continued with vomiting and diarrhea for a second day. I pulled him off of food and encouraged him to drink water. My resolution to get him to the vet on Monday, though, changed when he woke up Saturday hungry and energetic. He displayed absolutely no problem with urinating outside. He wanted to piddle around the backyard with me and play with his toys inside.

            I suspected he’d passed a bladder stone, and fretted myself into worry that there could be more and worse ones that could block him totally. When I called the vet to talk to someone, the tech thought that Koi was already on prescribed food and suggested I come in to pick up more. Upon my arrival, she realized that he wasn’t on prescription food. A quick conference with our vet resulted in Koi being scheduled for a check in three weeks following the diet shift instead of me bringing him by the next day for a physical to change to the medicated food.

            Leaving with Hill’s Prescription Diet Urinary Care C/D in cans, I resolved to help fifteen-year-old Koi to better health. Following the online instructions, Koi began transitioning from his beloved kibble (he only eats one favorite along with a half can of chicken in the evenings). The first two days went well enough as the wet food mixed into his kibble without him caring. The second pair of days, he still tolerated the change. The more the diet food took over his portions, the less he wanted to eat. When we reached 100%, I’d already gone through all of the online suggestions—heating it, adding warm water to it, putting it in a different bowl, different location, treating it like a reward treat. Koi ignored the food and drank tons of water instead. We even left the house for four hours with the food out, thinking that maybe hunger would drive him to eat if we weren’t around. No luck.

            Koi, it became apparent, would fast for days before eating his special food. Logic led me to conclude that Koi would outwait me. I called the vet on Koi’s 32^nd hour of starvation and left the message that I was returning him to his previous kibble and evening kibble/chicken blend. I promised to take him in immediately if he displayed the same changes I had noted for passing a bladder stone, and we cancelled the appointment for next week since he’s off of the new diet. I must admit, my admiration for this splendid, stubborn dog grew over the past few weeks.       

Stubborn Koi--December 20, 2024