Sue's Blog - Some assembly required.

Is it the weekend yet?

                                                                           River

A troublesome week.
On Tuesday my friend's mum, who had been ill for a while, passed away.
It was awful.
I knew her very well and I was very sad about the whole thing.
She had a horrid disease and had suffered far more than she should.
My friend was phoning me much of the day before it happened in the evening.
I work for her and was due to go in on Wednesday.
The weatherman informed us that the temperature was going to be over 100F  with heat indices (whatever they are) of 110F (around 44C I think).
So, my friend needed me to work but I can't do the walk to and from the bus stop or the wait for the bus in these conditions.  It makes me poorly.
So, she very kindly arranged for her brother to pick me up.
Which he did.
I arrived only to find that she wasn't that well either.  She is a type one diabetic (she needs to inject insulin and eat at regular times).
She looked like she was ready to pass out and I had to force her to drink some juice to get some sugar into her.   I have learned to recognize the signs after all these years.
The funeral is on Saturday.
If I am honest, I really do not want to go.   Simply because I have been to a lot of them and most were for people very close to me.  They hold horrible memories which come creeping back and keep me awake at night.
But, I can tell that Pat expects Philip and I to go .......so we will.
That is at 1pm.
At 5.30pm I have to be at a bridal shower.  We don't have these in England.
Over here, you accept your invitation to the wedding and buy a gift.....fairly straightforward.
A couple of weeks before the wedding though, they have a bridal shower where you go for a meal and buy another gift.  What is that all about?
The person who is getting married is someone I have only met twice.
I only agreed to go to help a friend out.  Now it is turning into something of an ordeal.  Philip was invited to the shower too but he has refused point blank to go.
So, I will have to go on my own.   I will only know my friend...nobody else.
Sigh..........I wish I could say 'no' to things but I find it so difficult.

Thank goodness for my paintings.
I finished the picture above this week.  It was a special request as a tribute to the dog in the picture and the man that rescued him and looked after him for years.
He had a very sad story with a very happy ending. Apparently he was found badly injured in a river by a very kind man who decided to give him a home. He had probably been used as a 'bait dog' for dog fighting. Poor River had to have his leg amputated but never let it slow him down. He lived a wonderful life with the guy who rescued him, but recently died. I was asked to do this portrait by the Rescue Centre, as a tribute to River. I was more than happy to.
Thank you River.  You stopped me from going completely loopy this week.

posted by Sue Banks @ 12:43 PM