My son gave me a book of (very) short stories by Nabokov for my birthday, and in the first tale, “The Wood-Sprite,” I came across a wonderful word that was new to me: tintinnabulation, meaning a ringing or tinkling sound.

It rather delighted me, so I thought I’d share it with you.

#WordOfTheDay #language #vocabulary #Nabokov #tintinnabulation

Art for today. Been on a social media fast of late, but popping in to say hi and share my most recent painting, of our sweet bunny, who fell ill last year and had to be put to sleep just before Christmas. He was about 8 years old. I painted his portrait for my daughter, who was particularly devastated by his death. This memorial to him helped a bit, I think.

Goodnight, Mrs. Kitty, by Deirdre Antes Spencer, oil on canvas board, 14"x18", 2024.

#artistsOnMastodon #oilPainting #art #pets #bunniesOfMastodon

My vet didn't tell me the stage (and I was so upset I didn't think to ask!), but repeatedly stressed she was a "very sick cat" and that her kidney damage is permanent. The vet on call inferred that we were looking at a hospice-type situation, with treatment options being limited and poor even if we pushed for gaining a clearer diagnosis through more invasive testing.

Whatever the outcome, I'm grateful that diet change seems to be helping her quality of life for now.

Thanks again for the terrific resources.

My happy #caturday report is that our Eevee has gained 0.3lbs, which may sound unimpressive, but is so great because the week before she was still losing weight. She is eating more and her personality is back.

Hoping for this to be a trend and that she can live a good life with the kidney function she has.

Art for today. #SFBA fam, it may seem a bit out of the way from the City's and the Town's art scenes, but I found this pair of exhibits at the St Mary's College Museum of Art in Moraga to be well worth the visit.

"Corita Kent: heroes and sheroes" is a small but mighty collection of Kent's graphic art supporting social justice in the late 60s. "Lisa Congdon: Hold it Lightly," in both its pop art color palette and its "themes of joy, liberation, and radical inclusion," is the perfect contemporary chaser.

I've long been an admirer of both women, so it was a delight to be able to see their work so close to home.

#CoritaKent #LisaCongdon #exhibit #exhibition #art #museum #PopArt #ProtestArt #socialJustice #inclusion #StMarys #BayArea

Art for today. I'm taking my daughter to the the opening celebration of the second triennial de Young Open 2023 salon exhibition on September 30, and am really looking forward to seeing SF Bay Area artists' work there.

Wish they did this annually!

#art #SFBA #artists #museums #exhibition #salon #deYoungMuseum #sanFrancisco

https://www.famsf.org/exhibitions/de-young-open-2023

Eevee is feeling much better this week, though she's still not eating very well. She was playful yesterday to the point of getting in trouble, parkouring in our closet and on forbidden counters. 😻

Her scabbed ears have healed and her fur is growing back (guess she was reacting to her old kibble) since we switched her to low phosphorus wet food. She's taking 3 medications for her kidney function and its symptoms, plus dietary supplements every day. Today I have to tackle giving her a vitamin B12 shot. I'm really anxious about it.

Really hopeful she responds and stabilizes, and gains a bit of weight, and we that can eventually keep her on an even keel with just a kidney-supporting diet.

#caturday #catsOfMastodon #eevee