When I got home in October after my Mom's death, I went into two months of heavy brain fog. Heavy. Brain. Fog. If I compare the grieving for my Dad years ago to grieving my Mom's death, it would be like comparing a marathon to a sprint, a sprint over burning coals. It was incredibly intense, but at least the worst of it was over much quicker.
During the two months of brain fog, I clearly didn't have all my synapses firing. I would forget very simple things. One day I could not bring up the name of a friend of ours. You know one of those couples, let's call them Bob and Sue. You call them Bob and Sue almost like saying Bobbinsue. You can't say the one without saying the other. Well, one day I couldn't remember Bob's name. I said "Sue and........" Nothing. Bob had left my brain. Gone. No Bob. Sue was there, but she was alone. Finally a few minutes later, about to lose my mind over losing my brain, Bob was back, right there where he belonged in my brain with Sue.
Another day, I couldn't remember the name of the Vice President. Of the United States. This wasn't the new one, this was the one we had for eight years. I am a total news junkie. I know who people are. But for a very long period of time, which felt like forever but was probably only about 20 minutes, I couldn't come up with his name in my head. Finally....Joe Biden. Joe and Jill Biden. Barack and Michelle, Joe and Jill, Bob and Sue, I started going through the names of couples, making sure it stuck. Whew, that was scary. My doctor said it was stress, and thankfully she was right because I think I got my brain back.
As Spring approached, I had both some time and cognitive ability to finish the Doggie Blanket for Oliver. Oliver was the pup my sister was dog sitting when my Mom died. That very intense night back in October, Oliver did what dogs do best - they give unconditional devotion and comfort. What happened with that sweet dachshund became Oliver's Story, a Tail of Love. The last photo we have of my Mom is her hand on Oliver's head. He wasn't her dog, but at that point my Mom was Oliver's human. I wanted to make Oliver's owners a little doggie quilt for their amazing little guy.
I had searched online for dachshund-themed fabric. There are a lot of dachshund lovers out there, that's for certain. I looked and looked, but couldn't justify buying fabric from halfway across the globe for not even a yard of fabric. I don't know what the carbon dog print is for an Etsy purchase from Sri Lanka, but I preferred buying locally. Then I found this, and the Etsy sellers were right here in Rancho Cordova. I could pick it up and save on shipping.
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| Dachshunds galore! |
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| I had the rest of the fabric, including some cats. Oliver can chase them in his dreams. |
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| All Squared Up and ready to sew. |
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| Polka dots for a dog with personality. |
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| The furry side. |
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| I rolled it up and sent it off to Connecticut just in time for the Stella Snowstorm. |
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| And here is loyal and sweet Oliver with his Doggie blanket. His specialty is burrowing and heart melting. He excels at both. |
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| Now, what to do for this little bundle of joy? She clearly needs a coverup. |
