my day so far...

I saw a raccoon bigger than Malcolm in the courtyard about an hour ago.  It heard me coming, ran out into the road and under an oncoming lawn truck.  Amazingly, it survived and is gimping around the neighborhood as we speak.  Unfortunately, its permanent residence is the cedar tree in our front yard.  This guy (the raccoon) came out when we were having a party last Saturday, and we regularly see him when we are out in the yard in the evening.  Patrick saw him in the courtyard the other night.  Unless he (again, the raccoon, not Patrick) is going to pull his own weight around here and start helping with the laundry or something, he is outta here.  I called animal control.

Also, birds keep flying into my windows and glass doors.  I am sure it is because the doors are so incredibly clean that the birds don't even realize the doors are closed.

Earlier today, I was in Publix, and I saw my turquoise friend, this time outfitted in royal blue, complete with matching headband.  She did not remember me from the last time (when she asked me if Malcolm "worked").  This time, she talked to Ceci extensively about helping Mommy load the cart (Ceci, meanwhile, hid behind her hair) then turned her attention to Malcolm.  Due to the haircut, I assume, she recognized him as a boy.  

"Oh, now they have very different coloring, these two,"  she says.

"He's blond like his Daddy," I say.

"Oh, well he is very cute."  (Malcolm is eating this up, smiling away) "Very, very cute."

"Well, he has a cute Daddy,"  I say.

"Well, you're a good looking woman, yourself,"  she says very matter-of-factly.

"Why, thank you,"  I say.

"Well, you better let this old lady through to finish her shopping,"  (She's referring to herself here, not some other old lady, which would have been hilarious had that been the case.)

Never a dull moment.