1. Our month of things breaking continues. I have a few more to add to the list that I started (and thought I ended) last Friday.
Last week Sam drove his power car into the lamppost, which made the top of it come loose, but it was still okay, just a little tilted. Then we got lots of wind over the weekend and that finished it off. Our beautiful lamppost, which I just had installed last fall, now looks like this:
I have faith that my impressive duct-tape repair skills can fix this! I will then color the tape with a black Sharpie to make it blend in with the lamppost. We'll see how it goes!
The fierce wind also blew off most of the petals on our pretty flowering trees. :-(
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Next, a cable for our DISH satellite has come loose and is just hanging off the house.
The repairman is coming out on Thursday to re-attach it.
And finally, something's wrong with Brody. I spent two hours at the vet with him yesterday and he's still there. He has a nasty urinary tract infection and he could be pre-diabetic because he is a fat cat and needs to lose weight. Sigh. The good news is that he's responding really well to antibiotics and can come home today.
In that vein, on a somewhat related "pet problem" note, Boo Boo ran inside the house with a dead baby rabbit last night! Peter wasn't home yet. I was completely horrified! Needless to say, there is NOT a picture to accompany this particular escapade! I psychologically shut down when it comes to small dead animals; I can't even bear to look at them. I've been avoiding the spot that he dropped it in too. Thank goodness the carpets are being steam-cleaned next week. Our carpets look clean but they conceal an unsavory secret--they're sometimes full of crap because of our naughty cats and dogs!
We seem to have this trend of a bunch of not-so-good things happening all at once in our lives. It's like we're going along just fine, nice and normal, minding our own business, doing the best we can, and then BAM! We get hit with a bunch of difficulties all at once. This is what happened last December. This is how April is turning out (although it's not nearly as bad as December was). But I think I prefer to have a bunch of inconvenient things happen at the same time rather than have them spread out throughout the year. I'll take nine to ten good, unproblematic months and two or three difficult months instead of twelve average months. As long as none of us die and the house doesn't burn down or get destroyed in a tornado, I think we can handle whatever comes our way.
{Famous last words.}
2. The actor who played Gilbert Blythe in Anne of Green Gables and Anne of Avonlea (and the third movie they did, which I really didn't like and pretend was never made), Jonathan Crombie, died suddenly last week at the age of 48 in New York City of a brain aneurysm. Such sad news.
He was so good as Gilbert; I really don't think anyone could have played Gilbert as well as he did. He WAS Gilbert. He helped make the movies magical, special, and romantic. His chemistry with Megan Follows as Anne was perfect. He will forever be remembered and immortalized for this very special role. I like to think that there is a special place for him in heaven for the role that he literally played in these classic, wholesome, wonderfully uplifting movies.
Here's a tribute to Jonathan, or "Gil," courtesy of my Anne of Green Gables Pinterest board.
The scandalous wink that enraged Anne.
This scene is so funny!
"I'm not your horse, Mr. Blythe." Ha ha!
He was so proud of Anne when she recited and performed "The Highwayman."
It was adorable!
I love this scene, when he gently caresses her cheek and tenderly calls her "Carrot."
(Although I have to admit...I would have said YES to Morgan Harris when he proposed, since Gilbert was engaged to someone else at that point. Morgan Harris was a catch!)
(Now back to Gilbert!)
I know this is corny and disrupts the sweet narrative. But it's funny and relevant!
When I first saw Anne of Avonlea, this final scene on the bridge was pure magic for me. It was so romantic and beautiful and such a satisfying conclusion to the story. I still remember watching it for he first time on a sunny Saturday afternoon while sitting on the floor of the family room with my arms wrapped around my knees in our house in Layton, Utah when I was 10 or 11 years old. I was totally enchanted! And a devoted fan for life. So much so that we went on our honeymoon to Prince Edward Island and also spent our 10-year-anniversary there, with plans to go back for our 15th in two years.
Rest in peace, Jonathan Crombie. Thank you for giving the world such a great Gilbert Blythe.
