Category: Ties

I let Bow Tie o’ the Day keep one item from the Desert Beach House, and it chose this. Most of Momo’s tchotchkes were dispensed to family years ago, but this 2-foot-tall wonder hung around. We have no idea what it is. As a child, I was sure a genie lived in it. Now, I’m thinking it was originally a tall, decorative, obnoxious wine decanter. Looks like it has now become playground equipment for bow ties.  🎠

Left the Desert Beach House with Bow Tie o’ the Day and the positively last of our belongings. Didn’t cry. No regrets. It was time to go. I’m tired of living in two houses. Was privileged to live, off-and-on, next door to my parents for the last 17 years. The last two years, I’ve been in Deltassippi almost constantly, to keep Mom in line. I will miss the porch and the sky, most of all. And gravel roads. Gravel roads teach you perspective.

Mom likes wearing Bow Tie o’ the Day cuz it hides her neck wrinkles. She’s had her funeral attire picked out for years, and she’ll be buried in a dress with a HIGH neck. She doesn’t want us to be scared of her neck wrinkles when she goes. Before Peggy Crane’s superb funeral today, we were pleased to see our beautiful Peggy with no pain on her face. That was a comforting sight for those of us who already miss her and her right-on humor.

Bow Tie o’ the Day is relaxing in the Delta house living room one last time. All that’s left in this Desert Beach House are these necessities: a tv and remotes; a directv box; a crate for Bow Tie and I to sit on; a mini keg o’ Diet Coke; Doritos; M & M’s.

Mom’s kidney doctor, Dr. Mercado, sports a stethoscope as our Tie o’ the Day. Everyone Mom meets immediately becomes her friend. Dr. Mercado even calls her “Mom,” much to her delight. This is another reason we think St. George is the right place for her: she is close to her doctors, and they enjoy taking care of her. Notice that Doc Mercado thinks Mom is so beautiful, he has to take a selfie with her. 📸 📱

Blue linen Tie o’ the Day wanted to match with some clothing. All I could find to do this was my pair o’ Bud Light socks. These knee socks are as close as I now come to imbibing. I loved me my brewskis! Say the name of any brand and type to me, and I can remember that beer’s precise taste. I can even remember what brew I was drinking on any given adventure I experienced. And I swear this is true: different beers create different buzzes. Trust me.

My friend/second mother/drinking buddy/fellow old broad/porch pal, Peggy Crane, passed away this afternoon. When I visited her in the hospital this morning, we laughed our way through a long talk. I left the room to grab a soda, and when I returned, Peggy wasn’t sure who I was. But once she saw Bow Tie o’ the Day around my neck, everything made sense to her again. [Check out Peggy giving Mom the bunny ears in the first photo!]

Bow Tie o’ the Day, sewn to its own collar, is thrilled at how the light is changing throughout the eclipse. Skitter is kinda uneasy about it. She’s pacing around, about two inches from me wherever I go—except outside. She will not leave the house. She looks me in the eye, and it’s like she’s saying, “WTFudge?” Roxy is absolutely oblivious to what’s going on in the sky. Yup, she’s enjoying grazing and licking the kitchen floor.  🌮 ☀️

Here’s Mom wearing Tie o’ the Day in March. For years, Mom held court daily from a glider chair on my old porch, where she was never shy about sharing her opinions or her kindness. Our porch-time is priceless to me. She’s enjoying living with Ron in St. George. But I’m already shopping for a stair lift, so when Ron kicks Mom out for misbehaving, our house can accommodate her. Nah, Ron’ll likely keep ‘er. But I’m still getting a stair lift to ride and play on 24/7. 😜

Roxy’s our Tie o’ the Day model. We’re feeling kinda low about her. Roxy’s eyes and ears are failing. She’s 14, so it makes sense—in the circle-of-life way. But we hate it. We know she’s still mostly happy, cuz she’s got her appetite. And everyone else’s too. We’ve always called her our Hoover, cuz she eats any food particle she finds—including pickles, onions, cauliflower, and banana peels. The day Roxy isn’t hungry is the day Roxy’ll want to join Dad’s Bert, and my Araby and Vinnie.  🐶 😭