Rosemary Augustine

November 7, 2018: As I drank my coffee this morning in the bright Florida sunshine, I thought about my friend Allie Newton.  I knew she had a birthday coming up soon and I was trying to remember what age she would be this year.  She was always a lot of fun, as shown here balancing a spoon on her nose.

Allie and I first met, in July 1996, when I moved into an apartment building on Iliff Avenue in Denver.  She was my neighbor and we became fast friends.  We often had afternoon cocktails of veggie juice that she made in her juicer.  She was a Reiki Master and sage soul. She was also an accomplished artist.  She loved my kitties Byron and Maxx and was their caregiver when I traveled in the 1990s.   In 2000 she returned to her hometown of Melbourne, Florida and settled into retired life.  I visited her often in Melbourne and fell in love with the town – hence why I moved to Melbourne in 2015.

She had been in poor health for some time.  When I decided to move to Melbourne, she was my base while I looked at property to buy.  Although I drove her by my new condo complex in January 2015, sadly she was not able to do the stairs to actually see the beauty of the place inside.

Allie took ill in May of 2015, and once hospitalized she never returned to her home at Tropical Haven Mobile Home Park near the Melbourne Airport.  I visited her often once she was relocated to the Opis Nursing Home in West Melbourne.  Knowing her so well, I knew she didn’t want me to see her decline.  She even said that on one of my visits.  As time went on, she no longer remembered me.

So as I drank my coffee this morning, I decided to do a Google search to see if she came up in an obituary search… and sure enough she did.  Allie passed away on October 23, 2018.  The family never notified me.

I know Allie is in a better place now as her closing years were pretty rough.  Your love, your laughter and your friendship will always be remembered Allie.  Rest in peace my sweet friend…

Melbourne – On 10/23/18 at age 96, Allene Newton, affectionately called Allie, was called home to be with the Lord. Allene was raised by her mother, Francis Schell who ran the Flatiron Hotel in downtown Melbourne. She graduated from Melbourne High School and moved to Detroit where she met and married Max Newton who preceded her in death. She eventually returned to Melbourne with her finally earthly address being Opis Indian River Center. She is survived by her loving sons Christian (Helen) and Charles (Debra) Newton. Additionally she has six grandchildren, Harmony and Hillary Newton, Jason Pitts, Shelley Schmidt, Emily Peterson, Matthew Newton and eight great-grandchildren. A memorial service will be held at 2 pm on October 30th at the Lamplighter Village Clubhouse, 500 Lantern Blvd., Melbourne.  Published in FLORIDA TODAY from Oct. 26 to Oct. 28, 2018

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November 3, 2018: It’s not often that I sit at my local library and work with a view of the Indian River Lagoon – shown above.  Although I’m not thoroughly in love with Florida, this time of year reminds me of why I moved here.  Fall and Winter are the nicest times of the year. With cool breezes, enough to wear a sweater.  Rarely do I wear a coat, and only do so including gloves in January when it gets really chilly here… in the low 40s.  Last year we broke our record of over 1500 days of above 32 degrees… two nights in a row it dipped to 30.  All I can say is brrrrrrrrrr.  Spring is not too bad either.  And, summer is no different than when I lived in the NJ/PA area – just longer.  You really don’t mind the summer, because, it’s summer.  You get to enjoy the pool and you welcome the air condition no matter where you are.  When you are out and about in the hot summer, you dress appropriately. I’ve become a fan of sun dresses and sandals.

This time of year, however, you really don’t know how to dress.  Mornings are cool in the 60s and by 10 AM it can be 75 degrees … remember for those of us that live in a constant average temperature of 85 degrees, anything cooler than 70 is cold.  So when I comment online in January that it’s 45 degrees, you understand why I’m cold.  Unfortunately, I keep my fur coat in constant cold storage in Orlando.  I did stop in one day earlier this year just to try it on and it felt sooooo good… but, it needs to remain in cold storage with our crazy Florida weather and humidity.

Enough about the weather.  Let me update you on my fur babies – Oscar and Buttercup.  After their annual check up with the vet this summer, Buttercup had to have a fang removed.  Chipped and an abscess forming, she underwent dental surgery and came out loving me even more.  I had noticed that she stopped eating dry kibble, so I knew she had to have the tooth pulled.  Her tooth has been chipped since I adopted her, and it didn’t seem to bother her until just recently.  Oscar continues to steal Buttercup’s food, but I notice they huddle together when I have workmen come in for remodeling projects (quite an unusual scene between them, since they usually harass one another).  With the cooler weather, they are loving the patio and loving having all the doors and windows open 24/7.

I find it odd that my kitty had a chipped tooth and abscess forming, since I also have the same thing with one of my molars.  Has anyone ever done a study on pets and their humans sharing similar health issues?  I think that would be worth investigating, since I do believe there is a correlation.  Something worth checking into?  So here are a few links for reading about this… When Our Pets Absorb Our Illnesses and Excerpt from Dr. Orloff’s book about can pets absorb our illnesses.  Gives you something to chew on especially if you are NOT a believer of spiritual connection – whether human, animals or the earth.

As for social media… I’ve gone off Facebook completely and sadly including my Ziggy page.  Just can’t buy into all the craziness on Facebook anymore.  I miss seeing some of you on there, but, you can always email me or call for an update.  However, I do post kitty pixs on Twitter at ZiggysSecrets regularly … so please follow us there.  I’m hoping to also upload some of my art to another Twitter page that I’m going to rename (I’ll let you know when I do).  Yes, I know Instagram is excellent for all the photos… but I’m boycotting Facebook, since Instagram is owned by Facebook.  Besides, when I log into my Instagram account, it re-activates my Facebook account.  So, I’ll pass.

Meanwhile, I’m going to sit here and enjoy the view as I continue to do some other work.

Oh, a few hours have passed, I left the library and went next door to my favorite Melbourne restaurant Squid Lips and had lunch on the Tiki Deck… So you’ll see the picture below.

Hoping this email finds you getting ready for the holiday rush.  Enjoy the quiet time right not.  In a few more weeks, we’ll be whirling about juggling turkeys, decorations and gratitude.  I’m most thankful for a good life and an enjoyable 2018, and of course, your love, support and  friendship.

Love and Hugs,

Rosemary, Oscar and Buttercup

P.S.  Here’s another link from Dr. Orloff’s Blog site… 8 Ways To Prevent Overwhelm since we’re heading into “that season” and these are a few good tips for the holidays, and well really, any day. Enjoy!

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