So? How was your Cinco de Mayo? Did you eat Mexican food and drink tequila? Yeah, me either.
Fred had to work late (but he gets off early on Friday, woo!), so I had a long day to myself. I prefer it when he gets home at 3:30. He’s usually outside somewhere puttering until about 6:30 or so, but I like having him home doing stuff so I can go out and see what he’s done, or tell him what the cats just did (he’s always just as fascinated as you might imagine when listening to the tale of Listen What Tommy Did Now!) or whatever.
Shaddup, I just like having him home.
Yesterday morning I didn’t even sleep ’til my usual 6:30, because we talked for a few minutes before he left for work and I was so peeved at what he’d told me (someone peed on his bed I WILL KILL ANY CAT THAT I FIND PEEING ON FURNITURE. Which is probably why they don’t do it when I’m around, now that I think about it.) that I couldn’t get back to sleep, so I got up and put his peed-upon sheets in to wash and did all the usual morning crap. I was sitting at my desk captioning my Flickr pictures (I’m sure my captions are just fascinating. “Oh look, dear, she’s captioned another one with “Feeding Time”! Where DOES she get her innovative and creative captioning skillz?” I can’t help it, I feel bad if I leave them uncaptioned!) when something caught my eye and I looked out into the back yard to see Joe Bob flying through the air and then landing on the ground with a bird in his mouth. I swear to god, that bird must have been six feet off the ground when Joe Bob caught it. This isn’t the first time he’s caught a bird in mid-air, either. He’s quite the hunter, our Joe.
“Oh shit!” I yelled, kicked off my slippers, and ran out into the back yard. I stood over Joe Bob and bellowed “Drop it! Drop it, Joe!” But not only did Joe NOT drop it, he evaded me, did an end run, and flew into the house. I ran after him screaming “NOT IN THE HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUSE!”
I found Joe Bob, the bird in his mouth squealing like a pig, surrounded by cats, in the front room. He tried to evade me, but I was quicker than he’d expected, and I grabbed the bird out of his mouth. The bird – a young Cardinal – rewarded me by squealing like a pig a few more times and then biting me really hard on the hand.
“I’m trying to save you, stupid!” I said. I thought for a moment, then went onto the front porch and put the bird in one of the big plant pots on the porch. I figured either it would recover and fly away, or Newt or Maxi would come along and take care of it. It didn’t appear to be too badly hurt – more scared and stunned than anything – so I went back in the house and started picking up the trail of feathers. A few minutes later I looked out the front window and the bird was still there. As I watched, Newt jumped up on the porch, totally did NOT see the bird sitting there, and so I opened the door and called excitedly to him, and he ran inside.
On a side note, Newt is SUCH a good boy. If I open a door, he’ll go through it whether he was intending to or not. Maxi, on the other hand, does the “Do I waaaaaaaaaanna go out? Or stay in? Out or in? In or out? I cannot DECIDE… Let me stand here halfway in and halfway out and see how that feels.” I’ll put up with indecision from her for a few minutes before I bellow “IN OR OUT! One! Two! Three! Four! Five!” If she’s not out by the time I count to five, I push her out and shut the door.
Goddamn cats.
So then after I’d gotten some laundry hung out to dry and had given Kara her morning snack and done a few other things, it was time to head to Wal-Mart for a few things I’d forgotten to pick up on Saturday. After meaning to for weeks, I finally remembered to bring the camera with me. There’s this field of yellow flowers (weeds?) on the way to Wal-Mart that’s really pretty to look at, and I’ve wanted to get a picture of it for ages. After my trip through Wal-Mart, I stopped on the way home and did just that.
(pic)
(pic)
The rest of the day was pretty peaceful. I watched the rest of Atonement, which I’d started on Friday. I usually like to cross-stitch when I’m watching TV or a movie, but I got lost a couple of times in the first few minutes and had to rewind, so finally gave up on the cross-stitching so I’d know what was going on. I ended up liking the movie a lot, despite the very sad ending and despite the fact that the way Keira Knightley talks annoys the snot out of me.
So, all in all, a pretty peaceful day.
Today, I get to snatch Sugarbutt up, toss him into a carrier and take him to the vet. He’s been licking between two of his toes and it’s gotten pretty bad. We’ve tried putting antibiotic ointment on it, but he just licks it off and then continues licking ’til his toe gets bloody and then he tracks blood all over the place. Poor Suggie. I hate to terrorize him by taking him to the vet, but he clearly needs some medical attention. Also, his shots.
(pic) Is it just me, or do they appear to be posing for a picture? Like for the monthly Chicken newsletter or to hang in the front lobby? “Bob, please put down the coffee and get in here, the photographer doesn’t have all day and the Big Guy says we have to present a united front for this stupid picture. Anyone found giving the finger will be fired immediately!”
(pic) I was going to say that I really like the little red chickens who look like Rhode Island Reds, and then I was going to say that I really like the black ones with cream-colored markings, and then I was going to say that I really like the little yellow ones, but really? They’re all my favorites. I think they’re all just as pretty as can be. I can barely stand the beauty of the animals here at Crooked Acres.
Well, maybe except for this obnoxious ass:
(pic)
The pigs are so pushy and obnoxious that they have certainly not wormed their way into my heart at all – and I’m not being facetious. If Fred hadn’t called and reminded me that I needed to feed them yesterday, I would never have thought of it. I rarely go out there unless I have food for them, and I never ever enter the pig yard at all. They’re growing quickly, and anything they see, they try to eat – including clothes and boots – and I can totally imagine them knocking me down and chewing my face off. They’re certainly entertaining enough to watch, especially when they’re eating, but I’m not going to miss them when they’re gone.
Y’can’t love everyone, I suppose. They’re still spoiled as hell, as is every animal who steps onto our property, and will be ’til slaughtering day comes around.
Kara and kittens are doing just fine. I have not squooshed a single kitten to death. YET.
(pic) “We iz sleepin pls leave alone thx.”
(pic) “Hey, wha – is it time to EAT? No one called ME. There better be some left for me, or I’ll be kicking ASS.”
More pictures over at Flickr.
(pic) The hallway outside the guest bedroom is a busy, busy place.
Previously
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry.
2005: Hoverers make me want to just get the hell out of that store as soon as humanly possible.
2004: I think it’s a boy, though.
2003: He’s his usual Fancy self.
2002: “I can’t believe you let me go out in public like this!” I yelled at Fred.
2001: No entry.
2000: No entry.
Ok, maybe this is a totally stupid and ridiculous question but I don’t know nothin’ about birthin’ no kittehs. Do the kittehs always use the same nipple to nurse? Do they line up in the same order? Or do they line up by who gets there first? Is there a nipple pecking order? Or … just random? HEY. I’m a CITY KID. 🙂 Thanks!
All your animals are so cute and well cared for. I love coming here and seeing their photos.
We have 1 cat who will pee on my bed. We do what we can to prevent it but sometimes she evades all efforts and still manages to get her pee on. HATE!
Just out of curiosity, does Kara carry the kittens around by the scruff of their necks at all?
It will be interesting to see who is pissed off with Fred. Someone not getting enough attention because Fred spends all his time outside playing instead of sitting and cuddling. I hope you figure out the culprit and stop him or her. I had a cat that did it and no matter what I did, I could not stop him from peeing on my bed. I took him to the vet 3 times for tests and help. I ended up having him put to sleep – the Humane Society said he would be un-adoptable and it was the best thing for him. He was only about 18 months old so I wasn’t so attached, but I was still very upset. I would have found a farm for him, but I had him declawed and he had to be an indoor cat.
We now sleep on a bed encased in vinyl sheets. Not for any kink, mind you, but because we have a pee cat. HATE.
I just found out that you guys missed a major holiday! Apparently May 4th was “International Respect For Chickens Day” (http://www.upc-online.org/) I realize it’s a crunchy granola vegan holiday, but there’s no one I’ve ever known that respected their chickens more!
~Juby
De-lurking to say I did the cat/bird in the house thing only it was with a dog and live rabbit which escaped at one point. I’ve learned to #1 – if dog is carrying a rabbit do not go out and try to get him to drop it, and #2 – if you do go out, do not leave the door open. Good lessons to learn.
Are we going to get a bird update? 🙂 And also, what did the vet suggest for suggies toes? My Clyde has been licking his raw – not as bad as suggies, but probably just enough to be annoying.
I had a pee cat. Oh I still have the cat but she no longer pees on my bed. I love my Sophie to bits …we have been through a lot together. Her peeing on my bed was so extremely frustrating. Someone years ago suggested that Sophie might not appreciate my fluffy down duvet. Something about the smell of the feathers. I removed my down duvet and she has not peed on my bed since …and that was at least 4 years ago. Touch wood.
I have a pee cat, but we’ve had him for 6 years and until recently had never peed on our bed. Within the last month he’s done it twice. Big time hate. The bedspread is too big for our washer, so I have to go to the dreaded laundromat. I think a waterproof covering for the mattress is in our future.
Fluffy (the pee cat) would ocassionally pee on our dog’s blanket and twice on my son’s sleeping bag. I figured he did that because they were stinky. I don’t know what’s going on with our bed.
On the subject of flickr, I hate trying to figure out interesting titles and descriptions. Mine are usually very lame.
Hey Robyn, your comments about the pigs remind me of the series Deadwood, where they gave murder victims to the Chinese to feed to the pigs.
Hey Robyn! I’m with Renate…except it reminded me of The Silence of the Lambs movie! The one with the red-headed actress(can’t remember her name) not Jodie Foster.
Just wanted to say I love your hallway runner. Every time I see it in a picture it looks so pretty!
Ah the joys of cats.
If you noticed someone doing a search for “cat videos” the other night. It was me. I was looking for the vid you had up YEARS ago, a montage from AFHV.
That thing NEVER fails to crack me up.
J.
I’ve been suspicious of pigs ever since Dorothy fell into the pig pen in the Wizard of Oz. Everybody panicked!
Our lovely Miss K. is a pee-er. She first did the deed on Robert’s side of the bed, staring me right in the eye as she did it. After that, her access to our bedroom was forever cut off. She’s locked out of the computer room too, because there’s a bed in there. Which she has peed on.
She has peed on every piece of furniture that has come into this house, including beds we’ve gotten for her and the dogs.
I won’t put her down because of it, but I’m waiting until she shuffles off this mortal coil to buy furniture we really, really need. And she’s convinced me that she’s the last cat who’ll ever call my place home.
What’s up with the pigs nose? It looks totally clogged with goo. I don’t know anything about pigs, but it looks like it can’t breath!
Steph, I believe that was Julianne Moore.
Aren’t those pretty yellow flower weeds a field of canola?
Good Lord, those pigs have the biggest nostrils I have ever seen. They are generally kind of creepy looking. I don’t think I could eat them though, having known what they eat. But that’s just me. I’m weird that way. Love the chicks. They are adorable.
I do believe that those flowers are feverfew. It supposedly cures just about everything – try it on your favorite ailment and see if it works! 🙂
Even if it doesn’t cure world hunger, the flowers are lovely, aren’t they?
http://www.kcweb.com/herb/feverfew.htm
My spayed and neutered cats NEVER pee on anything….until my grown kids come to visit.
They smell a male hormone…..that’s all she wrote.They’re peeing all over their dirty laundry, duffle bags, sheets, you name it.
I also once had a female cat that peed (constantly) on my room mates bed, after she had S.e.x. (the room mate, not the cat)
I am now convinced the peeing has something to do with the smell of sex. 🙂
Anyone agree?
Oh , I forgot.
P.S.
Those little fat kitten tummies….OMG! could anything be cuter????
I think NOT!
I can’t help it, that picture of the little piggie just makes me want to wash his dirty face with a soapy wash cloth. I guess it’s easier to think they’re cute when you don’t have to raise them! 🙂 I Enjoy your pictures and stories so much, Robyn!
Wnated to update you on the lady that spent 30 days in shelter for the Humane society.
Here is her last day blog
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Day 30 of 30
Current mood: grateful
Category: Blogging
Day 30 of 30
This is it folks! My last full day here. At the close of business yesterday we have raised $22,181.00 with more still coming in. We still have several pledge sheets out with my volunteers that are collecting donations for this fundraiser so I know there is more to come. I’ve asked that they all have their sheets and money turned in by May 15, 2008. Like I said yesterday, I will never forget this experience or the people that have stepped up to help. This has been one awesome experience and well worth my time spent here. I would do this again if given the chance. Probably, not any time soon, LOL, but I would do it again. It’s for the animals!!!!
I am so sad for the babies here. I know I’m not going away for good but I can’t help but feel like I am somewhat abandoning them. I know in my heart they like me being here and will miss the time I’ve been able to spend with so many of them one on one. I honestly don’t think I can stay away for a whole week while on vacation. I will probably be sneaking back in just to see ‘my’ babies. I would love to take ‘Baby Kitty’ home with me. She has come so far since I began my 30 day venture here. She was a wild kitty and now is at the front of her cage happy to be loved on and pet for as long as I can stand there. She is still fearful of being picked up but will rub all over me, roll around and purr like crazy. To me, she is precious! She has been a challenge but well worth the time and patience it has taken.
I’m upset that I can’t go vote today. Voting is so important to me but my mission here is more important to me, so………. If only I had started my 30 days 1 day earlier. I’m rooting for ………….. HAHA got ya!
I have to tell you what happened yesterday with the puppy that came in as I was writing in my journal. This is so neat and gives me goose bumps each time I think about it!!!
On Saturday morning Rick’s dad found an orphaned puppy on the side of the road by his house. He lives out in the middle of nowhere. The puppy was cold but still alive. He looked for others but only found this one. He put him in his jacket, took him back to the house and got him warmed up. This puppy is MAYBE 2 weeks old and needed bottle fed. Richard bottle fed this baby both Saturday and Sunday. He brought him to me yesterday morning. A couple hours later a lady pulled up with a dog in her car that she had found Friday evening. She brought her in and this dog was nothing but a skeleton. Poor Baby! Every bone in her body was protruding. It was obvious she had puppies somewhere, she was full of milk! I asked where she found the dog and ironically she found this dog in the very same place the puppy was found. Probably 15-20 miles from here. YEP, SAME BREED AND YEP, THEY LOOK JUST ALIKE!!! I thought to myself this can’t be, but stranger things have happened. I pulled the puppy from the box under my desk and momma dog went crazy!!!!!!! She was kissing it, wiggling and squealing with joy. THIS WAS HER BABY!!!!! REUNITED AT LAST! Again, I am getting goose bumps as I write this. Puppy is nursing on momma and so far all is well! Please keep them in your prayers!
Well, I should probably get busy. I have alot to accomplish before leaving here tomorrow morning. I will be back to post updates when I return. The tears I am shedding right now are tears of joy and happiness. THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR GENEROSITY, YOUR SUPPORT, YOUR ENCOURAGEMENT, YOUR KINDNESS AND STICKING BY ME FOR THESE BABIES. YOU ARE MY HEROES! GOD BLESS YOU ALL!
4:52 AM – 2 Comments – 4 Kudos – Add Comment
when do the kittehs go to the shelter for some adoption lovin? Is it when they are spaying age? 3-4 months is it?
I don’t know how you don’t smoosh them!