Category: CAE

You guys, this is the coolest thing. PetSmart Charities created this program called Rescue Waggin’:

The Rescue Waggin’ ® program was created by PetSmart Charities to help save the lives of homeless dogs and puppies by transporting them from areas of high pet population (where they face certain euthanasia) to shelters where adoptable dogs are in demand.

If you go to this page and watch the video of Spunky taking “The ride of her life” (upper left corner), Pedigree dog food will donate $1 to the charity. It only takes a few minutes and if you’re a sap like me you’ll at least tear up a little, and then you’ve earned $1 for the Rescue Waggin’ program. How could it be any easier? Watch the video all the way through ’til you get the “Thank you” message, please.

Please just take a few minutes out of your day to watch it? Please please?

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The dancing guy video I referred to yesterday was the America’s Funniest Home Video where the wife kept locking her husband out of the house or car, and wouldn’t let him back in until he danced for her, but an email and a comment reminded me – you guys have seen Where the Hell is Matt, right? I’m linking it just in case you haven’t. (And thank you to reader Michele, who reminded me that I’ve been meaning to link to it for ages!)

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Awwww…how can you resist Spanky’s warm, fuzzy-ness?

I know this is a rhetorical question, but I’m going to take a moment to sing the praises of Spanky. He is SUCH a good boy, our Spanky. He’s the elder statesman of the Crooked Acres kitties (almost 12!), and except for a couple of urinary tract infections, he has never ever given us a single moment of trouble. He’s quiet but loves to be petted – sometimes in the evenings he’ll get up on the couch next to Fred and just look up at Fred with the Eyes o’ Love, and if Fred looks down at him, Spanky moves his head around like “HI DAD!” and meows softly.

He’s always been kind of a timid cat. I think I’ve probably told the story, back in the early days of my journal, about how I was sitting on the couch reading and I kept hearing ::THUMPTHUMPTHUMP::HISS::THUMPTHUMPTHUMP:: and it turned out that all the cats were chasing Spanky around the house. At that point, he wouldn’t fight another cat unless he was directly attacked, and even then he preferred to run away.

These days, he’s a little more willing to put the smack down. For some reason he does NOT like Joe Bob (Joe Bob, we’ve discovered recently, has taken to occasional spraying, and I think Spanky takes strong offense to that kind of behavior) and will kick Joe’s butt on a moment’s notice. (Don’t feel too sorry for Joe Bob – he, in turn, has something against Stinkerbelle and teases her horribly until she unleashes the hellcat scream.)

Every night at Snackin’! Time!, all the other cats mill around like little idiots, all “Where my snack? Where’m I supposed to be? Is it snack time? Uh duh?” despite the fact that each of them is given their snack in very specific locations. Spanky is the ONE cat who always knows exactly where he’s supposed to be, and he patiently sits in his corner until he gets his little plate of Snackin’.

Also, he’s the Bathroom Ambassador, and without his help, how on EARTH would we know where the bathroom is kept?

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If I remember right you had a “I want it” attack about key covers some celebrity had. I just found a website that sells different types. I think you later changed your mind but I thought I would insert some temptation into your life.

Give to me this url, please. I did change my mind, but my mind can always be changed back!

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Robyn, just wondering if you know what Bonnie, used to be Bontasia, from San Antonio’s website is? My computer crashed and I lost it.

Bonnie’s here now. She doesn’t write a lot, but she does drop in from time to time to post something.

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Actually, brown sugar is just less refined than white sugar. If you don’t have brown sugar handy, you can add molasses to the white sugar to make a substitute. If Fred really hates molasses, you might try turbinado (Sugar in the Raw) or Demarara sugar. Both of them are just unrefined cane sugar and might be more to his liking. I’ve used a combination of maple sugar and turbinado in baked beans, and it works well. Or is is possible that Fred just doesn’t like sulphured molasses? I like unsulphured, but I’ve never cared for sulphured.

I actually didn’t know the answer to the sulphured vs. unsulphured question so I asked him and he said “I just don’t like molasses, period.” So there you go.

I LOVE turbinado sugar – I used it the first time in a recipe I made a few months back (a blueberry coffeecake recipe where you sprinkle turbinado sugar on the top before baking) and really liked the flavor.

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I recently started watching Tori and Dean and I don’t know why but I love it. I used to think that Dean was not very good looking but he is growing on me and their baby….OMG so cute!!

I think Dean can be really good looking, or he can be kind of goofy looking, depending on what he’s doing or talking about.

I have to say, though the fact that he calls Tori “Mama” all the time annoys me, the way he looks at her – like he is the luckiest man on earth and God, how the hell did I get this lucky?! – melts my heart a little. And yeah, that is one adorable baby!

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Do you watch Chelsea Handler? If so, what do you think? We are definitely on board. Have to DVR it though, can’t stay up late to watch it real time.

I’ve never watched Chelsea Handler, but next time I’m in front of the TV, I’m going to set up to tape a few episodes and see if it’s something I want to keep watching.

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I can’t remember, what happened to Jake kitty? I think that was his name. He had been adopted and brought back maybe a couple of times.

I knew exactly which cat you were talking about, but it took the LONGEST time for me to remember his right name. Jack Frost! Jack Frost was adopted and returned a couple of times, but it appears that he’s been adopted for good – it’s been a few months and he hasn’t come back yet. Yay!

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The cupcakes look good. wouldn’t it be easier to just put a mini reeses peanut butter cup in the middle and then make the peanut butter frosting? (aside from the pain in the ass of unwrapping the peanut butter cups, that is. LOL)

Y’know, it wasn’t until you said that that I realized it was kind of silly to use a box mix to make the cupcake part, but have to mix peanut butter and powdered sugar and roll it up into balls. You’re right, it would be way easier to use mini peanut butter cups instead of dealing with the peanut butter. A lot less messy, too!

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Not that you were asking for suggestions… When we last froze corn we used a turkey fryer to boil the corn. Since it was set up outside the kitchen wasn’t so #*&$ hot, and we could do a ton of ears at a time. It may go without saying, but just in case: We filled the turkey fryer with water, not oil.

That’s an excellent idea. Am I wrong in believing that corn deep-fried in oil would be FABULOUS, though?

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You’ve seen this, haven’t you? http://www.drhorrible.com/ It’s from the creator of Buffy and Firefly. It’s truly great.

I actually did get to see all three parts when they were available on that page (they’re now only available via iTunes) and I agree – it was really good, and I liked the singing! When it comes out on DVD, I want to watch it again, though. I ADORE Neil Patrick Harris.

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There are even more great pics of the garden and how it’s laid out here: http://www.vituperation.com/2008/06/30. gave me ideas for my own (much smaller) one.

Kathy’s right, the pictures on that page do give a better idea of how the garden is laid out; Fred didn’t put it in his “Crooked Acres” category on his journal, which is how I missed it while I was looking for pictures last week.

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So dish: Is homegrown chicken significantly better tasting than store bought?

It absolutely is about ten zillion times better and more flavorful. And this was a year-old chicken (the chickens you buy in the store are about 45 days old when they’re processed), so it was a wee bit tougher than store-bought chicken, but the taste more than made up for it. Also, weighing in at just under three pounds before I popped it in the oven (in other words, bones and all), we still managed to get three meals out of one chicken – the roasted chicken we had for lunch on Sunday, then the chicken and rice casserole we had twice this week. Also, my lunch today!

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Oh I have no doubt you will eat the pigs…but I thought I read you will not be doing the slaughtering, correct?

Nope, a professional will be doing the job on the pigs. HOWEVER, Fred is already talking about getting a couple more pigs in a few months, and I’m fully aware that they will be ready to be processed in the cold months of the year, which means Fred will want to take care of them himself. And I vehemently protest this turn of events. VEHEMENTLY. I think it should be left up to the professionals. And I will be going out of town if he insists on processing them himself.

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I swear, I thought you were going to segue into saying, “and that’s why Fred and I have become vegan,” ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Fred enjoys his meat far too much to ever do that; so do I, for that matter!

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Good for you, Robyn! Personally, I don’t think I could do it. I’m reading “The Omnivore’s Dilemma,” and there’s a passage in there about killing chickens. The author takes his turn at it to see what it’s like. It’s certainly better than how factory chickens are raised and killed. Have you read this book? You might find it interesting.

I own it, but I haven’t read it yet. Hopefully I’ll get around to it soon!

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I figured you had to kill chickens sooner or later. Otherwise, you’d be known as the crazy chicken lady instead of crazy cat lady. You ONLY have 9 permanent cats. Do you even know how many chickens you have these days? I had no doubt on the pigs either. You do not like them, you won’t pet them, you feed them using a long stick etc! Ha ha! I was surprised when Fred mentioned in his blog that the pigs are going in August or September. I thought it was more like November. He did mention getting a cow. Are you going to be milking it or Fred or is it going to be a steer just for beef?

We have around 50 chickens, and four of our hens are currently sitting on 17 eggs, so the population will be exploding here, pretty quickly!

(Actually, Fred spotted our first newborn last night when he was making his rounds.)

I do, actually, like the pigs. Or at least I find them entertaining, and they crack me up when we (Fred) feeds them cookies and they chew the cookies and look all contemplative, like they’re fine gourmets who are considering the ingredients of their snack before they decide how to rate us in the Piggelin Guide.

And we feed them using a skewer ’cause they get kinda bitey when they get excited, and I’m attached (HAR HAR) to my fingers.

We originally thought it would be later in the year before they’d be big enough, but Farmwife called it when she said it wouldn’t be that long because they’d be big enough LONG before the winter. Fred measured them last week and Big Pig is over 200 pounds; Little Pig is around 145. They’re a lot bigger at this point than we’d expected!

I don’t know which of us will be milking the cow – I’ve never milked a cow and don’t know how good I’d be at it, so we’ll have to see about that!

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Hey, yeah do those undies ride up? I have to admit, I buy men’s bikini underwear because for whatever reason, THEY stay where they are supposed to be. Womens always seem to be up my butt.

When I read “Womens always seem to be up my butt”, I snickered. That sounds like a line from a rap song.

I have have no riding-up issues with my Hanes Cotton Bikini panties at all, and I highly recommend them.

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Your green beans look just like my Grandma’s. Would you please tell us how you cook them?

I use Pioneer Woman’s Fresh Green Beans One Way recipe. Her recipe calls for red bell pepper and I don’t like bell pepper, so I just leave that out, and it is still FABULOUS.

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I used to work on a poultry farm and it cracks me up that you went through the chopping method to kill your bird. We used to just put a foot on their head to hold them down and give a good yank on their legs. That breaks their necks and kills them instantly. I never had one go all flappy on me afterwards. I would never have lived through the sprayed with blood thing either. ick

and

I was told that my great grandmother lived on a farm and would just kill the chicken by grabbing it by the neck and swinging it around over her head breaking the neck.

I’ve had other people tell me that neck-wringing was the way to go, too, but I don’t know that I can bring myself to do that. Give me time, maybe one day I could, but I’m just a poor beginner when it comes to this stuff, y’know. After perusing Carla Emery’s book (we call it the Country Bible), I found that in her chicken section she listed methods of killing chickens from worst to best. The worst? Chopping its head off. The best? Using a killing cone. You can read more at Fred’s site if you’re interested; I don’t think I’ll be going into any more chicken-killing specifics in the future. I prefer to focus on the happier and less grisly side of life!

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Why does Flappy look raw in the photo?!?

‘Cause we take the skin off our chicken after cooking it. It was skinless but cooked through, believe me – nothing makes me gag faster than the idea of eating raw (or rare!) chicken. Gah.

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At first glance I thought that pattypan squash thing was some sort of muffin-like pizza dish and I got all excited, but then I read what it was and yea, the excitement was lost. Oh well, it still looks nice.

I don’t know what a muffin-like pizza dish would be, but I’m with you – I want some of that!

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Ok, if pigs don’t have sweat glands then how does one “sweat like a pig?”

Hell if I know! Maybe you go roll around in a mud hole?

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I hate squash SO MUCH (as in it makes me GAG), but that patty pan stuff kind of looks good. Can you get it in grocery stores?

I’ve never seen pattypan squash in the grocery store. The first time we found it was at a farmer’s market, which gave Fred the idea to grow it ourselves, and I know I’ve seen it from time to time at the produce stand I drive by regularly, but never in the grocery stores.

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The “little” pig? Little? Robyn, there is no longer any “little” pig. They’re both HUGE!

Well, compared to the big pig he’s little! Littler, maybe? Smaller? Smaller pig? We have to have some way to differentiate them when we’re talking about them, though the little pig is a pushy little brat, maybe we could go to calling them Mr. Nice and Mr. Pushy.

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Do your cats ever just flop down in such a manner that you have to go and nudge them, to make sure they haven’t had a stroke or something? My mom’s cat does that. Walking across the room, and BAM, on the floor.

They don’t ever flop down so suddenly that I think they’ve had a stroke, but at least once a day I’ll see a cat that is sleeping so hard that they look like they’re not even breathing, so I either nudge them ’til they look up sleepily at me all “WTF?”, or I make a kissy noise at them so they’ll twitch their ears.

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Those pigs are no longer cute lil piggies; they richly deserve the name “Hogs.” I bet they will be extremely delicious. Would you consider shipping some bacon???

I haven’t asked, so I don’t know for sure, but I suspect that giving any of our bacon to someone else would probably be considered a divorceable offense by Fred.

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A webcam on crooked acres’ farm would be most entertaining!!!

I agree! One out by the pigs, one by the chickens, one on the front porch, and one in the foster kitten room would be perfect. Fred doesn’t agree with me, though – at least, not yet!

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Will you butcher the pigs at the same time? If you don’t, will the remaining piggy be lonely without his friend to whisper secrets to?

Yeah, they’ll both be going at the same time. I don’t know if pigs are particularly social, but these two like to hang out together, they’re almost always in the same part of the yard, and they like to chase each other around, too. Partly they’ll both be going because we wouldn’t want the one who was left behind to be lonely, but also getting them there is going to be… not difficult, but it’ll take some planning as far as getting them there, and I think it’s better to do it once instead of twice.

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Robyn, what ever happened to the Spiderman you used to photograph when you were remodeling/painting Crooked Acres? I haven’t seen him in a long, long time. Did he get et by a pig perhaps?

He’s still around here somewhere. After his tussle with Malevolent Madeleine, he hasn’t quite been the same. After sitting around on his Spidey ass eating too many donuts and gaining some flab, he started working out and he’s almost back in fighting form.

Good thing – I hear there are some VERY BAD kittens around here somewhere…

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i saw this on apartment therapy and just had to share the photo with you…are you sure that’s not your house:) hehe

I LOVE it! I think Fred should build me something like that, don’t you?

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I have a question about squirrels (I know you have had your fun and games with them). Someone in the neighborhood is giving them peanuts. They are planting the peanuts in my flower garden, digging in the soil and killing all my plants. How can I get them to stop?

I’m the wrong person to ask, ’cause I’ve never even tried to stop the squirrels from the pain in the ass stuff they do – but I have the best readers in all the land, and I bet they have great suggestions. Readers?

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Are you watching Date My Ex? I keep forgetting to ask.

No, I haven’t seen it yet and I don’t think I want to. I strongly suspect that it’s going to end with Slade saying “Jo, after all this, I’ve come to the conclusion that the best man for you is ME!” and Jo will be all (in baby talk) “OMG! Slade, you’re right!” and they’ll get back together and next year will come the reality show My Big Fat Dysfunctional Relationship.

Jo bugs me with the baby talk and Slade is just so slick he makes me want to smack him.

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I cannot stand Tori and Dean, yet I watch that damn program every week. (I usually catch the 15th out of 45th rerun, or some other such nonsense.) Do you think their marriage will last, or will it implode just like about every other celeb marriage that is the basis of a television show?

Who knows? Hollywood marriages don’t have a tendency of lasting very long, obviously, but SOMEONE has to be the next Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward, right?

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When making your homemade laundry detergent, did you use an old stockpot? I would really love to try and make this, but I don’t have a stockpot that is not being used for cooking food. (And I can’t use that one, lest I poison all the people in the house. Right?) Do people really have pots that they use just for non-food purposes?

I do have a pot devoted to nothing but laundry detergent, it’s a big cheap pot I bought somewhere last year and then never used. I was just concerned that after I made the soap I wouldn’t be able to get the pot clean enough to make food in it, and decided to err on the side of caution.

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I love baked beans but I can’t fathom growing navy beans when they are 29 cents a pound at the grocery store. On the other hand, I should plant and learn to tap a maple tree since I’m willing to pay $7/pound for maple sugar, which I use in my baked beans.

Well, to be fair they cost 99 cents a pound around here. Since we planted half a pound at the beginning of the summer and ended up with four and a half pounds, that’s QUITE the savings!

Okay, maybe not.

It’s less about the saving-money aspect and more about the knowing where our food comes from. And it’s just kind of cool to grow our own food and then can it as baked beans and not have to go out and buy a can when we need it. Kind of dorky, I know, but that’s us. 🙂

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The face of disgust kills me. "Yeah, I know. He KEEPS showing it to me. He thinks I WANT to see it. This is what I live with, day in and day out."

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Some cats like to sit IN the box. Not our Joe Bob – he’s a rebel.

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Previously
2007: Evan Rachel Wood! You are throwing away your youth and beauty on a talentless freak! You are wasting the pretty! Stop it right now, young lady!
2006: No entry.
2005: Home again, home again.
2004: I am a SUCKAH for the bullshit claims on bottles of lotion.
2003: Momma always said, stupid is as stupid does…
2002: No entry.
2001: Oh joy.
2000: I’m such a wimp that even a confrontation on TV ties my stomach in knots.

A couple of weeks ago someone asked:

I was going through my bookmarked blogs the other day and ran across the old link for Anita’s site (bald moses). I miss her writing. Do you know what happened to her? Is she writing somewhere else?

In my response to the question, I totally lied and said I didn’t know, but I got the okay from her to announce that actually she’s blogging privately, and anyone who wants to know where, email me and I’ll forward your email to her.

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What a garden haul! I have a question about the cucumbers: are those two different varieties? I was wondering why some curve when the rest are straight. Last year all my cukes curved, but I didn’t know why. Still tasted good, just looked odd.

Yeah, they’re two different varieties – Straight Eights, and Pickling Cucumbers, I’m told. I’ll be damned if I can tell any difference between the two – and as a reminder to 2009 Robyn and Fred, YOU DON’T NEED TWO DIFFERENT KINDS OF CUCUMBERS. Pickling cucumbers are all you need. You don’t really LIKE cucumbers all that much, and for the love of god, only plant one panel worth of cucumbers, not TWO.

For the green beans, have you tried the recipe on the Pioneer Woman Cooks blog? I haven’t tried it yet, but it looks so good!

I’ve made it several times – always without the red peppers, because I don’t like bell peppers (or any kind, really) – and though I’ve never actually gotten to the point where the onion carmelizes (no matter what temperature I cook it at or whether I keep the lid on or not or how long I cook it), it’s still DAMN good. I also don’t use bacon grease, because we rarely have bacon and thus have no grease to keep around, so I stick with the butter/ olive oil combo.

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It seems like you have so many veggies and you don’t like doing all the canning and what not. Did you ever think of planting less or selling/giving some away???

Well, no. I’m canning this stuff not for shits and giggles, but so we’ll have it to eat through the year until next Summer, when we can have it fresh from the garden again. You can enjoy the results of something without enjoying the process of getting there. Once we’ve put away enough of each vegetable to get us through the year and have made sure our friends and family have more than enough, we either feed the excess to the pigs and chickens, or yank the plants up.

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Is that thing Zoe is sitting on a cat scratcher?

Yeah, it’s one of these (I did NOT pay $30 for it, though! I don’t think I got it at the pet store, either. Maybe Target or Wal-Mart?). Also, there’s a fuzzy ball hanging down from the part that curves upward, and Zoe likes to get on her back under there and bat at it. She looks like a little kitty mechanic when she does.

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How do you prepare your sweet corn for freezing? The last recipe I tried was a disaster; the directions were a real pain and the end result was hard and unappetizing.

We have this book , the Encyclopedia of Country Living by Carla Emery. In it, she says that she brings a big pot to boil, puts as many ears of corn that will fit in it, then when the water comes back to a boil (it takes a few minutes), she removes the corn and puts it in ice water. That’s what I did this weekend with all our corn – the other books I have say that you should blanch the ears for like 10 minutes – that’s WAY too long in my opinion, and you’ll end up with mushy corn.

Another way to do it, if you have room – we did this last year – is to just freeze the corn in the husk without blanching or anything (though you’ll want to put the ears in bags for freezing). When you’re ready to eat it, thaw it out (still in the husk) and microwave it for three minutes. It tastes great and it’s easier to husk after it’s been microwaved, too. The only reason we didn’t do that this year is because our ears of corn were particularly wormy – every ear of corn Fred checked had a worm in it – and I didn’t want to find a cooked worm in my corn next year!

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Are those hats or just stuffed animals on the cats’ heads? I can’t believe you got one on the Boogs. Is he hetting much?

They’re hats. I got them at Target (I stood in the aisle and giggled for several minutes when I spotted them, imagining how much we’d have torturing the cats), and I’d link to them, but I can’t seem to find them on the Target site.

Mister Boogers didn’t het for long – he’s a kind and benevolent Boogs.

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Have you taken any pictures of your garden? I didn’t realize you had so many different things growing at once. It’d be cool to see it all before it was harvested all pretty on the vines/trees/etc.

I thought I had, but apparently not! Fred’s got pictures here and here (from early May), though.

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I was thinking of doing a fall garden….I’ve never done one. In fact, I haven’t even done a summer garden in probably 15 years. So, do tell, Robyn….what does one plant in a Fall garden? Because I’d like to try it this fall.

This Fall, we’re planning on growing:

Collards
Turnips
Carrots
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Cabbage
Potatoes (we grew red potatoes this summer, and will grow white this Fall)
and possibly Kale

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I need your help, Oh Creative One-I’m planning my first ever trip to Maine in September and have no idea where to start with planning. I want to eat lobster and just generally see some pretty scenery. I love the water and would enjoy some easy hiking. Any suggestions? We’ll be there 4-5 days.

A great area to stay in Maine for day hiking, seeing wildlife, and go whale watching (not to mention shopping) would be either the Portland area (they have a walking/ running path around the Back Bay, boat tours that leave pretty regularly in the summer and early Fall, and plenty of shopping – though for some SERIOUS outlet shopping, I’d recommend either Freeport or Kittery) or Bar Harbor. I’d almost recommend Bar Harbor higher than Portland because it’s near Acadia National Park (ie, lots of day hikes – http://www.acadia.national-park.com/hike.htm ), it’s on the water and if I recall correctly, it’s got ferries to nearby islands, some of which you can spend lots of time exploring on foot. It used to have pretty good shopping – lots of little shops to check out – when I was last there (though it’s been a few years), and it’s a very pretty small-town Maine experience.

The Seabasket has – in my opinion – the best seafood in all of Maine.

That’s what comes to mind right away – those of you who’ve been to Maine, feel free to chime in with suggestions!

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You’re making cookies? For the pigs? Don’t take this the wrong way, because I say this with love, but that’s CRAZY.

and

Homemade cookies for pigs – yep – crazy! Isn’t easier to just buy some day old cheapy cookies?

I am SO not crazy. It takes like 10 minutes to make the cookies, I know what’s going into the them (ie, BETTER FOR THEM), and I don’t have to haul my ass to the store to buy cheap-ass chemical-filled cookies. HMPH.

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Robyn: We get to suggest “Best of”s? I like the Senator Boogerton entry.

One of the absolute best entries EVAH is the one describing how you got your arm stuck behind the bed. PRETTY PLEASE add that one.

This one? Also, I am sad to say, I got my arm stuck behind the bed a second time six months later, and Fred wrote about it.

Anyone who ever wants to suggest an entry for the “Best Of” page, feel free to!

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Is it the camera angle or is Zoe really like half the size of the others?!

It’s the camera angle. Zoe and Kaylee are about the same size – they’re the little ones I call my “peanuts” – Inara’s bigger than both of them, and River is the moose of the bunch.

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Is there something wrong with Mr. Booger’s eye?

If he spends too much time outside, Mister Boogers’ allergies start acting up, and his one eye gets watery and kind of gross looking. If it gets particularly bad, we treat it with chlorpheneramine which usually clears it right up.

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Edgar may be your secret boyfriend but Phil of Cornelia Marie, Rick of Maverick and Sig of Northwestern are mine. >D I got a little captain in me.

Man, stop bogarting all the captains! My favorite captain is Phil but for overall funnest boat I have to say that the Hillstrands seem to have some serious good times.

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what do you do with the dried cherry tomatoes?

I stick ’em in the freezer, and then during the winter I make what we’ve come to call “vegetable medley” with yellow squash, pattypan squash, zucchini, okra, and dehydrated cherry tomatoes. It’s faaaaaaaabulous.

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Kittens, fighting. First on the bed, and then in the tub:

See it here in MPG format.

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Joe Bob, probably planning to pee on my laundry when I’m not looking.

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Previously
2007: Like mud with a soupcon of cat poop stirred in for good measure.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
2004: No entry.
2003: If I were Jennifer Lopez, I would be VERY frightened at the thought of birthing an Affleck baby, if noggins like that run in the family.
2002: I mean, an online journal. Have you ever heard of such a silly thing?
2001: No entry.
2000: Okay, I just really don’t have anything to say today.

Are you and Nance going to do another podcast for us? I loved the last one!

No podcast from us this time around, you probably already realized. Nance didn’t bring her fancy recording equipment with her this time. Maybe next time!

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Since you like to make anything and everything, I thought you might like to try Homemade Oreos. There are some rather interesting recipes on her blog.

::Drooooooooool::

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So tell me a little bit about pattypan squash… I’d never even heard about it until I read about it here and it looks very interesting. Is it super sweet like butternut squash or is it less sweet like yellow squash? Do you peel it? How do you cook it? I’m trying to increase my veggie repertoire!

I hate the fucking SHIT out of pattypan squash. It’s a pain in the ass to cut, it doesn’t taste any better than yellow squash, and Fred seems to think it’s the most amazing vegetable this side of okra. I HATE IT. To me, it tastes very much like yellow squash, though it’s firmer and less watery than yellow squash tends to be. We eat it sliced up and oven-fried or diced and sauteed with yellow squash, eggplant, and/ or zucchini (whatever’s on hand) – which we call “vegetable medley”. I’ve seen recipes indicating that you can hollow out the pattypan squash, prepare the innards in some way and then use the shell of the pattypan as the serving bowl. I’ve never done that, though.

(I might be hating the pattypan a little more than usual, given that I spent three hours dicing it up for the freezer so we can eat vegetable medley all damn winter long. Stupid pattypan.)

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My first thought on seeing you taking a picture of the cake pan on the floor was: “How is it possible there are no cats getting frosting on their noses?” My beagle would have her face right in that cake if I tried a stunt like that. The risks you take for your readers! I’m so glad Nance was there to document the situation.

If I’d left the cake on the floor any longer than I did, I can guarantee that at least Miz Poo would have come moseying on over for a sniff-see. As it was, though, the cats are usually pretty uninterested when I’m in the kitchen. They never get any extra treats from me (I’m too fixated on getting whatever I’m working on made so I can get the hell out of the kitchen), so why bother hanging around? I think they were probably scattered all over the house, sound asleep.

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You have peach trees??? If so, I am so jealous. Peaches won’t grow where I live – it’s too damn cold. As a child, I envisioned moving to the south and living on a peach farm/plantation. Heh.

We do! Scroll down a bit in this entry, and you can see them from earlier this year. They were tiny little peaches, but surprisingly flavorful. Considering the fact that Fred just planted the peach tree last year, I think the fact that he got a nice-sized bowl of peaches is pretty awesome.

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Poor Sugarbutt. How much longer till he gets it taken off?

We’ve started taking Sugarbutt’s collar off around dinnertime and keeping it off ’til bedtime. The first night Fred did that, Sugarbutt jumped into the air and then hauled off like his butt was on fire. I’m hoping maybe after his vet appointment on Monday, we’ll be able to keep it off him. I think it’ll all depend on how quickly his toes heal.

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Robyn, you look great! I’m jealous of your garden. I was wondering if you’ve read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. She and her family moved to a farm in southwestern VA and spent a year eating only food that they grew or raised or that was grown or raised within 100 miles of their home. It’s really got me thinking about where the stuff we buy in the grocery store comes from, and looking for local farmer’s markets. Love the kittens, I have five adult cats and miss the little ones.

Actually, I have – I read it about this time last year, and enjoyed it a lot. Which reminds me – when the tomatoes start coming in good, I want to give the Tomato Sauce recipe a try!

It was a very good book, I recommend it to anyone who hasn’t read it.

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Did you and Nance colour coordinate your outfits in the great cake taking photograph? (beige pants, red tops!)

We didn’t color coordinate – Nance is just such a damn copycat that she had to copy me.

(I kid, of course – actually, I was wearing gray pants, not beige.)

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How do you hang your laundry outside without it totally getting covered in pollen? I don’t dare try that with all the allergies in my house.

Good question – I’ve never had a problem with it. Either I just don’t notice it – doubtful, since Fred suffers from allergies – or we don’t get a lot of pollen around here (at least not this time of year), or my clothesline is located in some weird pollen-free vortex.

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Have you figured out which one of the cats has been doing the recent peeing (on the guest bed, in the kitty bed)? There are so many potential suspects! Are you ever tempted to set up a video camera to catch the culprit? Also, if one of them pees on a bed, how do you prevent the mattress from taking on that hideous cat pee smell? Do you have special Cat Lady techniques that you are willing to share with the world?

I strongly suspect that either Joe Bob or Mister Boogers is the culprit when it comes to the peeing in the guest bedroom. Mister Boogers has been known to pee on beds to register his displeasure with whatever it is that’s going on at the moment and Joe Bob, well, I just think he’s a troublemaker because he’s always smiling.

But then, I know for sure that Maxi likes to spray (did you know that female cats can spray to mark their territory? I never would have believed it, except the bitch did it RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME) and I suspect that Newt pees on things I leave on top of the washer (imagine my rage when I walk by the washer and find that my cleaning rags have been peed upon. I CANNOT HAVE ONE GODDAMN NICE THING IN THIS HOUSE.), so what I’m saying here is “Fuck if I know.”

We were having an issue for a while with someone occasionally peeing on Fred’s bed. Now, we both think that that was due to the fact that years ago, when suffering from the effects of diabetes, Tubby peed on the bed a few times, and I suspect the cats can still smell the remnants from that. I myself would insist on a new mattress, but Fred won’t hear of it because he doesn’t want to spend the money (and that mattress was damn expensive). Anyway, I very much wanted to set up a hidden camera to see who the hell was doing it, but instead Fred installed a latch on his door so now the cats can’t get in there at all.

All the beds in the house currently sport waterproof mattress pads, but in addition to that, I can’t recommend Stink-Free strongly enough. It removes the smell immediately and – as far as I can tell – the smell doesn’t come back at all.

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I love the idea of using a bucket for a litter box – y’all are genius! What’s the diameter of the bottom of the bucket? What are the dimensions of the hole and what did Fred use to cut the hole? I think we need an instructible!

(Those of you who missed the initial entry about the Lowe’s bucket/ litter box, see a picture and read about it here.)

According to the label on the bucket, it is a “Rough & Rugged Extra Large Heavy Duty Tub (with Rope Handles)”, made by United Solutions. It’s 22 1/8″ in diameter, and 16″ high. The hole is 8 inches by 9 inches (I measured the hole in the old covered litter box and made an outline on the tub where I wanted the hole to go). According to Fred, he used his jigsaw to cut the hole in the bucket. It’s a nice, clean cut, isn’t it?

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Have you seen Wipeout on ABC? We watched last night and I am ashamed to admit we laughed our asses off. Good mindless summer TV with people getting the you know what knocked out of them. And then there are the Big Balls…

We haven’t watched it yet – but it’s certainly up Fred’s alley, so I’m sure we’ll be checking it out sooner or later!

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I don’t know how you do it. This morning I was digging in my closet for work clothes and found that the shirt I wanted had fallen off the hanger and was on the floor. I picked it up and got a whiff and realized Darth Vadar had peed on it. I’m so sick of the smell of cat urine. I wanted to just strangle him. He’s lucky he wasn’t in the room.

I tell you what, I get SO PISSED when I find something that’s been peed on. And what’s worse is that it’s ALWAYS a freakin’ surprise. Fred can tell you, I get mighty irate about it, too. I am completely paranoid that my house smells like cat pee, and if there’s any cat pee anywhere in the vicinity, I can smell it, and I can usually locate it eventually, too. I despair of the day when my sense of smell starts to go – I’ll have to hire someone with young nostrils to come over and sniff around the house to make sure it doesn’t reek of cat pee.

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Lack of adoptive homes for kitties must be just another sign of Mr. Bush’s economic disaster we are facing. Gasoline, food,in fact EVERYTHING costing more and more. Your lovely garden will certainly be a help to you and Fred as prices keep rising.

That’s Fred’s contention, too, that the economy is responsible for the dropoff of adoptions. ::sigh::

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I think I need to try this. The tiny kitty I found almost a month ago has decided that the guest room bed is the place to do her business. I covered it with a plastic sheet, but still ewwww. She uses the litter box occasionally, but prefers the bed. I have made her smell it, then put her in the litter box, trying to teach her, and that doesn’t seem to work. Anybody have any great ideas for me? Other than this, she’s the perfect loving kitty.

I know people left suggestions in the comments (I love you guys!), and the only thing I can add is to maybe try adding Kitten Attract to the litter box. It’s supposed to encourage kittens to use the litter box (and not the bed!); I don’t know that it works, but it might be worth a try!

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Robyn, I was wondering how it works with the kitties being stuck at the pet store before adoption. I foster dogs for a local rescue and we have adoptions on Saturday and sometimes Sunday for about 3-4 hours. We take the dog and stay there with them to discuss the pup with potential adopters. We actually get a say in whether the potential adopters can get the dog or not. Granted, they go through a ridiculous adoption screening, but sometimes the foster can just feel whether it will be a good fit. There are times when a potential adopter just screams to me that they shouldn’t take the dog. It is important to get a good fit. Just wondering if you get any input is all.

Until now, I’ve always taken the kittens (or cats) to the pet store and left them in a cage. The shelter’s adoption counselors have developed a keen nose for people who shouldn’t be allowed to adopt, so I’ve never actually come in contact with potential adopters before now. Now that they can come to the house to spend time with the kittens (after a rigorous pre-adoption screening), the shelter manager has been clear that if any alarm bells go off when foster parents are meeting with potential adopters, we should absolutely let them know.

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Can you tell us more about that collar that Sugarbutt has on? I’ve never seen anything like it! I’m betting we probably don’t even get them in Australia though…

It’s called the No-Bite Collar, and basically what it does is make it impossible for Sugarbutt to reach his toes and lick between them, which would stop them from healing. It’s a pretty neat thing, and according to the vet, works far better than cones do, with cats. Considering that the one time we tried putting a cone on Sugarbutt, he freaked right out so badly that we had to take it off him, I’d say the collar is working pretty well!

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Robyn, this has nothing to do with anything, really, but I notice that Sugarbutt’s got SoftPaws on. I was just wondering if you could explain how you get these on the claws – is this an adventure that you take all alone, or do you have four hands to get the SoftPaws glued on? Do you throw towels over the cats to get them to not freak out and claw at you to get away?

Fred always helps me when we put SoftPaws on Tommy and Sugarbutt – I’m sure that one person could somehow get them on a cat without help, but I don’t know how on earth that would happen, unless it involved wrapping them in a towel. Tommy and Sugarbutt are both pretty calm about having the SoftPaws glued on – they don’t like it, but they’ll tolerate it.

Also, I was hoping you’d be able to offer a little advice. I’ve recently attempted and mostly succeeded at training my little Mia to scratch her climbing tower rather than the sofa, so I know I can sort of train her to do some things. We live pretty high up in an apartment high rise, and we have a large balcony with a railing which Mia, the little minx, has taken to jumping on. This not only gives us a heart attack, but also, if she jumps down off the railing on the other side there’s a ledge that goes all the way around the building, but it is certainly not big enough that I’m going to go walking out there after her. She has jumped on the railing, she’s jumped down on the other side, and she’s walked around a little bit on the ledge (it’s about 12 inches wide in most places so she’s not likely to fall off because of bad balance, but still). Each time, well, let’s just say I am displeased. Do you have any advice on how to train her to NOT jump on the railing? It seems my yelling her name and shaking treats to entice her inside when she does jump up there doesn’t seem to dissuade her from ever doing it again. Short of being able to teach her to cut it out, I’m going to have to keep the balcony door closed, which in this weather is not the most ideal solution.

I feel sure that there must be something you can put around the railing to stop her from jumping up there, but a cursory search on Google gives me nothin’. I know my readers will have a solution, because they ROCK. Readers?

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Hi Robyn – love the litter box idea! Any suggestions as to what to do about a darling kitty girl that always gets all four feet in the litter box to pee and then hangs her ass right over the edge so pee goes on the mat/paper towel rather than in the box? She gets all the way in the middle to poo, no problem, but not to pee (and the box is clean, so that isn’t an issue). Once in awhile the pee goes down the outside of the box, but most hits the floor just outside. Sigh. Anyone?

The only suggestion that comes to mind is giving her a litter box that’s high enough that she can’t hang her butt over the side. The top entry litter box we have (though I don’t use the lid) is definitely high enough that she won’t be able to pee over the front, but as with all cats, it’s going to depend on whether she likes the litter box or not. Also, if she’s an older cat, it might be difficult for her to jump into it. Other than that – maybe a bigger litter box? Though the fact that she has no problems getting her poo in the box indicates that it’s either laziness or a MESSAGE on her part.

Also:

My elder statesman did the same thing due to lack of mobility and what I did was get some puppy housetraining pads (I get them at target) and place them under the litter box. You need to leave a few inches of the pad showing outside of the edge of the box to catch the errant pee. Works pretty well. I don’t know what to do about getting her to pee inside the box. Maybe try a bigger box?

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Speaking of RR, as she’s using the garbage bowl on 30 Minute Meals, it always drives me nuts that she is putting recyclables in with the other garbage. To me, it would be more work to separate everything after I’m finished.

I have to say, I’ve never actually seen Rachel Ray’s show, so the whole “garbage bowl” thing is just what I’ve read and heard from other people. I don’t actually use a garbage bowl, but if I did – I guarantee you, it would NOT cost no damn FIFTEEN DOLLARS.

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I’m surprised you don’t have a compost pile – but then your pigs eat all your composting fodder, I suppose. I do have a separate bowl for my kitchen scraps, but it’s just an old gallon ice cream bucket which gets emptied into our compost pile.

We do have a compost heap. I have a canister sitting by the sink in which I put all my compostable (non-meat) food. The damn pigs won’t eat the ends of squash or the ends of green beans or onion skins, so that stuff goes on the compost heap. Anything that’s not compostable and goes in the garbage, I usually toss in the garbage as I’m cooking – I guess it doesn’t bother me to take the extra steps to toss stuff in the garbage instead of in a garbage bowl!

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Repeat after me: “Righty Tighty, Lefty Loosey.” Turn the lid to the left to open the jar! I know it’s SILLY but it works. Also, if you take the blunt end of a can opener and just gently lift the bottom edge of the lid until that little piff of air comes out, the jar will open right up.

I do know “righty tighty, lefty loosey”, I swear! I just never think of it when I’m opening jars, apparently. 🙂

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Fred? The man who likes cheese, but not on his salad? Who likes cheese, but not on his burger? He wants TWO LAYERS of cheese on his squash? Now we know where Fred LIKES his cheese…or haven’t you told him that parmesan is cheese?

Not only does he LIKE cheese on his squash, the whole recipe was his idea! I’ve been told, recently, that he guesses it’s just American cheese he doesn’t like on his burger. Tonight we’re having hamburgers for dinner, and he asked me to get pepperjack cheese. To eat on his burger. I guess you CAN teach an old dog new tricks!

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you still feeding that spoiled kitten baby food? =)

That bratty little kitten AND her Momma AND her brother AND her sister (but not Kaylee) all share a jar of chicken baby food in the morning and another at night. You KNOW I spoil the hell out of my fosters, and I expect that they’ll be eating baby food as long as they’re in residence!

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As for the dental tech, and her comment about cats; she sounds more like someone who doesn’t care for cats OR dogs. Some people just don’t like or have pets, and never seem to have anything good to say about any species.

No, she’s definitely a dog person – she has a couple of dogs. She told me that in the evening when she sits down, her dogs get right up on her, and cats aren’t like that, they’re more independent. Considering that Fred cannot sit down and watch TV without Mister Boogers, Maxi, Tommy, and Spanky all up in his shit, I’m thinking she just hasn’t met the right cat!

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Fred called me from work yesterday. “It’s supposed to get really stormy this afternoon,” he said. “You need to go out and pick the squash before that happens.” It had been a couple of days since the squash got picked, and the only reason he hadn’t done it on Wednesday is because it was raining when he got home from work.

I went out to the garden and picked yellow and pattypan squash and zucchini and cucumbers.

I’ll be making pickles this weekend.

Some of the zucchini was really freakin’ big!

When Fred got home, it was not stormy at ALL. It was bright and sunny. And since he hadn’t picked green beans in about a week, he went out to do so. He came in with a big basket of green beans.

“Where can I put these?” he asked. “I’m not even a third of the way down the row!” I pointed to the utility sink in the laundry room. He picked and he picked, and he picked some more.

I’ll be snapping the hell out of green beans today. And maybe tomorrow. And canning green beans. And freezing them. And then I will kill Fred in his sleep.

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Kara and the babies are doing well. Kaylee, kind of standoffish until now, has warmed up to me a little. She’s always had the quickest purr – you barely touch her, and off she goes – but she hasn’t wanted to be petted. Until now – now she doesn’t mind a little petting. Until she’s done being petted, and then you better back off.

I adore this picture, because it looks like Zoe is airborne, that the purple thing is the rug and she’s in a mid-air Matrix move. They’re actually in the tub, fighting, though. They love to fight in the tub, for some reason. Also, they love to poke holes in my shower curtains. Brats.

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Joe Bob keeps an eye on the birds.

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Previously
2007: “It tastes awful… chickeny,” he said.
2006: I thought I was going to die from the sheer annoyance factor.
2005: But really, is there anything less threatening than giving someone the FINGER?
2004: No entry.
2003: Ever have one of those days, or is it just me?
2002: He can’t close a drawer all the way to save his life.
2001: What next, I ask you?
2000: Surely y’all know me better by now?

Happy Independence Day, Americans!

(And happy July 4th to the rest of you!)

Yesterday, Nance and Trey and I went to Target, stopped by Bed, Bath and Beyond, and then went to lunch at Lonestar before we hit the mall.

I had a gift card for Lonestar, and it covered the entire check, but when I looked in my wallet to leave the tip (after arguing with Nance about it; Nance subsequently went outside to wait for Trey and I), I realized I only had a one dollar bill and a ten dollar bill, and had to bum $5 off Trey for the tip. Later, when I had a $5 bill, I tried to repay him, and Nance did a body block and adamantly wouldn’t allow it.

Evil people.

We went to the mall and spent a few hours wandering around, in and out of Hot Topic and Spencer Gifts and Dillard and Bath and Body Works and Victoria’s Secret, and did a lot of people-watching. I actually didn’t buy anything (Fred is now dead from the shock of hearing such a thing, I’m sure), and Trey got a nice Insane Clown Posse hockey jersey for a killer price, and Nance got a sweatshirt for a killer price, but I just couldn’t find a thing I wanted.

We left the mall and headed for home, stopping at Publix on the way. I had a short list of stuff to get, so I blew through the store while Nance wandered around open-mouthed and tried to stop and look at stuff, but she was afraid I’d lose her, so she hurried to keep up. It honestly didn’t occur to me that she’d want to look around in a grocery store (besides, it totally didn’t even have a huge candy aisle like the one she took me to in Pennsylvania!), so we were out of there pretty quickly.

At home, we hung out, I checked on Kara and her babies and Trey and I shot the shit, and eventually Fred got home and we left for dinner at Big Bob Gibson’s. We always drag Nance and Rick to Big Bob Gibson’s when they come to visit, it’s TRADITION, so we did it this time, too. Trey mentioned that the BBQ chicken salad looked good, and I decided it did too, and then Nance got all copycat, so the three of us had that. The salad, I have to say, was very good, and the chicken was good, but I think next time I’ll have the salad with pork instead. Big Bob’s is known for their pork, y’know.

Fred and Trey watched Schindler’s List (hey, who doesn’t like a light, upbeat comedy, right?) and Nance and I surfed and gabbed the night away. I even put the chickens up by myself, and Nance and I went out to feed the pigs their nightly snack, so Fred could keep watching the movie.

In the highlight of the day, one of the cats peed on a cat bed in the guest bedroom. It could have been worse, but GODDAMN my cats and their nasty, assholey ways.

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As I’ve been going through my old entries and re-publishing them, I’ve been reading my entries from this time in 2005 and dreading what I knew what coming: tomorrow marks three years since Mia had to be put to sleep. For those of you who weren’t with me back then (or don’t remember), Mia and her babies were our first foster kittens. You can read about her growing sick and having to be put to sleep here, and then an entry about her the next day, here.

I ended up raising – so many of you donated – just under $2,200 in her memory. I think that is awesome, and for those of you who donated and are still around, I’ll say it again – thank you so much.

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Robyn, please thank everyone for their “logo love” and let them know that I’m a digital scrapbooker (never was, and never will be, a paper scrapper,) and your logo is from one of the MANY digital kits I have. The great part about digital is NO MESS and NO PAPER CUTS. And, you can reuse supplies over and over and over again. It’s my creative outlet. If anyone want to know more, you kindly linked them to my neglected blog and they can contact me through there. Peace!

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Sending happy and feel better thoughts toward Crooked Acres today. Sounds like a rough one. I am still sitting here waiting patiently to hear how the homemade laundry soap worked. I want to go get the stuff to make some, but want to hear your testimonial first.

I still haven’t used it – that damn Tide is lasting forever! – but I plan to do laundry this weekend and will use it then and report back (if I remember!) on Monday.

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I was going through my bookmarked blogs the other day and ran across the old link for Anita’s site (bald moses). I miss her writing. Do you know what happened to her? Is she writing somewhere else?

I’ll have to let you know; I’m not sure!

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So, does the new truck have a name?

Fred’s calling it Jezebel, I believe (well, actually he calls it “the truck”, but he’s called her Jezebel once or twice). Which is the same name the previous truck had. Fred believes in sticking with a good thing.

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Have you seen Chase No-Face? A warning, some of the pics are rather disturbing if you get close-ups. But the cat seems to be healthy, happy, pain-free, and thriving. My hats are off to the owners… I do not think I could do it.

I hadn’t heard of Chase No-Face (that I recall – and I think I’d recall!) and I didn’t get too far into the site, but god bless his owners for caring for and loving him so much!

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I hate to even ask this question (and I bet someone has already asked it), but are you thinking about keeping one of the kittens? I mean, I know that technically you don’t want/need another permanent cat but you sure do seem super extra bonded to those little fuckers. You practically birthed them yourself!

I am honestly not thinking about keeping one of the kittens – and mostly because there’s just no way on earth I could pick just one. I love River because he’s beautiful and goofy and playful. I love Inara because she’s my little explorer, and sometimes she’ll let me hold her and pet her for a long time, and she always greets me with a quiet meow. I love Kaylee because she’s shy but gets over her shyness quickly, she looks like a little raccoon, and she’s the sweetest little thing on earth. I love Zoe because she’s my troublesome little peanut and when I pet her she purrs immediately and I LOVE HER.

I swear to god, sometimes I really do feel like I birthed these kittens myself!

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Completely unrelated question here: I’ve been “hearing” you talk about a binder after your tummy tuck–what is that, exactly? Are there pictures of somesuch wondrous tool? You see, if I’m lucky to give birth to my watermelon in December, I’m wondering what I can do to help my body get back into the shape it’s supposed to be, and in my home country, there’s usually some wrapping of sorts going on (even with small weights, to help the innards deflate and contract faster). So, I’d be grateful for any pictures/ descriptions etc. that you could post.

It’s nothing magical, just kind of a girdle sort of thing and it looks like this. I’m still wearing it quite a bit, usually I go without for a few hours, then put it on around noon – I don’t know that I necessarily need it at this point (yesterday marked 6 weeks since my surgery), it’s kind of a security blanket.

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kaylee is the cutest kitty evah, next to Miz Poo. I am not cat-savvy, so what do you call that color pattern? Is that a tortie? Anyway, she was the cutest as a bebe and now….what a gorgeous girlie! I’d be VERY tempted to keep her, Robyn. You know you can always fit another kitty in at Crooked Acres, eh???? (wink)

She’s a tortie (tortoiseshell), or I suppose to be completely correct she’d be considered “tortie and white”, since I believe true torties don’t have white. I don’t remember ever seeing a tortie without white, though, to be honest.

We won’t be keeping Kaylee, not because I don’t want to (you KNOW I do!), but because like I said above, I couldn’t possibly keep just one of them.

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Ok, after reading this entry, and hearing about your desire for an above ground pool, I proceeded to dream last night that I was visiting your house, that you had indeed gotten the pool and that you were swimming in it with Mr. Boogers. I also went swimming, and when I was finished, I went into your kitchen and Fred handed me a kitchen curtain to use as a towel. At this point, I realized that I was, in fact MUST BE, dreaming and woke myself up. Just wanted to share.

I love it when you goofballs have weird dreams about us!

(Also, the extra towels are in the washstand in the dining room. In case anyone needs to know in a future dream!)

Mister Boogers is not much of a swimmer, either, by the way.

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I haven’t seen the book (blue eggs/yellow tomatoes) but the glowing reviews on Amazon are suspect (to me anyway). Two are from Altadena CA, which is “minutes from downtown L.A.” which makes me think these are the author’s neighbors/friends/relatives. The few recipes mentioned in the reviews do not entice me–it’s the kind of book foodies in L.A. of a certain age love. I wouldn’t buy it.

The only cookbook I’ve bought recently is Small-Batch Baking. When we were in Tennessee a few weeks ago, I was looking at a cookbook, and Fred said “Are you going to buy that?” and I said “Why on earth would I? I have the best cookbook on earth. I call it THE INTERNET!”

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Not to be an alarmist, but regarding Zorbing- did you see this?

LET ME DREAM, you alarmist hater!

(I kid.)

I hadn’t, though I don’t know that it would stop me should a miracle occur and I could ever drag Fred off the farm for more than a few hours at a time.

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There was an interesting documentary on ABC last night “The Outsiders” about Amish teens that I found very informative and interesting. You might want to watch it, if you didn’t see it last night.

I didn’t happen to catch it, but I’ve seen lots of news stories (and an Oprah show, if I recall correctly) about the Amish teens and their “running-around time”, known as Rumspringa. For a while I was absolutely fascinated by the concept, and I still think it’s pretty interesting.

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You could just get ONE cute cat paw print tattoo… you know, to represent ALL of your cats, or to just show your LOVE of cats, or to show that you’re a crazy cat lady… I think you should. And Fred should get one too.

I think Fred is more likely to go vegan and buy a Prius than to ever get a tattoo – he has less than no desire to ever do it. I tried to convince him to have my name tattooed on his ring finger so he’d be as cool as Tommy Lee (and because he doesn’t wear his wedding band), but he wouldn’t go for it. Hmph.

I said a few years ago that I wanted to get this tattoo. I also like this one. Who knows if I’ll ever actually get one? We’ll have to wait and see!

By the way, when I was looking at cat tattoos on Flickr, I came across this picture of a cat, tattooed. I think you can imagine my opinion on THAT.

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The kittens and Kara have recovered nicely. The kittens are back to bouncing around like little rubber balls, and Kara has taken to sitting atop the dresser in the kitten room, and I’m pretty sure that’s because the kittens can’t get to her there. A couple of them tried nursing yesterday, but Kara was having none of it. I think it’s safe to say they’re weaned.

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“She thinks that collar will keep me from going over the fence HAW HAW HAW!”

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Previously
2007: No entry.
2006: Shut the fuck up and go away, Tori. NO ONE CARES.
2005: And I know you fucking lame-os won’t go so far as to PICK THE FIREWORKS SHIT up or even send your kids around to do it.
2004: No entry.
2003: Something on the floor?
2002: Something on the floor?
2001: A bunch of links that probably don’t work.
2000: Because, you know, that’s how someone gets to be 183 pounds over their goal weight – by eating the grapes instead of the strawberries.

Hey, Rescue Me fans – did you know that they’re doing short “mini-sodes” to tide us over until the next season starts sometime in 2009? The DVR caught the first one Tuesday night, and we watched it Wednesday. And then I watched it twice yesterday. It’s only a few minutes long, but it’s hilarious. I think the best part of the show is when they’re all sitting around the table at the station, shooting the shit. I hope all the “mini-sodes” are this awesome.

If you missed it, you can see it online, here.

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I’m currently reading The Broken Window by Jeffery Deaver. I’m about halfway through the book (maybe a little less), and it’s making me a bit paranoid. The book’s about data mining, and it’s kinda freakin’ me out, man.

I don’t know that I can ever think of Lincoln Rhyme as a white man, since Denzel played him in the movie.

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But seriously? What do you do with pigs?

You spoil them rotten until they get big-ass, then you slaughter and eat them, of course!

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I read about a book called “Blue Eggs and Yellow Tomatoes” and thought about you. Have you seen it? read it?

Nope, I’d never heard of it. According to Amazon, it’s a recipe book. Anyone read it? Do I need it?

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I’m sorry if this question has been asked before and I missed the answer, but do you feed the pigs sweets b/c it makes their meat sweeter? Or is it just b/c it fattens them up?

Actually, it’s (c) None of the above. We feed them sweets because they like sweet stuff and it makes them happy when we bring them chocolate. I don’t know if it makes the meat any sweeter (I’d guess “no”), but I’m looking forward to finding out for myself!

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I am horrified that you would waste good chocolate on pigs. Then again, you will probably be making your ham sweeter. Feed on.

We might eat one or two of the chocolates from the box as we’re feeding the pigs. But I don’t know about “good chocolate” – it’s not like it’s Godiva!

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While watching the pig video, I got to gigglin’. I understand giving the indoor pets snacks (I give them to my pets of course!) But I started wondering how many “farmers” go to give their livestock “snacks?” You guys are the best!

It’s the unspoken rule that any animal who steps onto Crooked Acres must be spoiled rotten for as long as they’re around.

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Americauna, black crested golden polish – did you ever think you would know so much about chickens?

No! It’s kind of amazing, really – I didn’t expect to retain as much information about the different breeds as I have.

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How do you trim the chicken feathers? Scissors or some exotic chicken feather shears?

I have a pair of nail scissors that I got from a manicure kit that I use only for trimming back chicken feathers. I never expected that I’d ever type those words. I was curious and had to go see if there are any such things as “chicken feather shears”, but Google gave me nothin’.

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Have you been using your Ped Egg? My feet are looking a little nasty and I wanted to know if it was worth the money.

I think the Ped Egg is definitely worth the money. I have the tendency to use it for a couple of days in a row, my feet look a little better and less dry and scaly, and then I stop using it until the hideousness of my feet bugs me again. Probably if I used it every day, I’d have lovely feet, but I’m far too lazy to do that.

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Robyn, have you seen this

I hadn’t – how cool is that!

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Your rant about the side door being locked reminded me of Keith from KATG when he gets mad. “OF COOORSE it’s locked! That’s how I WANTED it! GOOOOD!” (read in a Keith- voice). LOL!

Every time they talk about Keith ranting like that, I laugh my ass off because that is exactly what I do. I don’t know WHY, but bitching and ranting like that always (eventually) makes me feel better.

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And you should tell folks your scar is from a magic trick gone tragically wrong.

It goes well with the scars I have on my stomach and on my back from having moles removed. I tell people that I was running from the cops, they shot me, and the bullet went in my stomach and came out the back, but did it stop me? NO. Because that’s EXACTLY how much of a badass I am.

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Did you have back fat wings before your LBL and if so, are they improved afterwards?

Yeah, I had back fat before surgery and it’s mostly gone now, because the surgeon reached up and liposuctioned the fat rolls under my shoulder blades. It’s much improved, but I think it’ll look even better next year when I have my upper body done.

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Wow Robyn, you’re healing nicely! Just curious… do you enjoy swimming? When I manage to get about 30 more pounds off, I’m looking forward to buying a new swimsuit and a pass to the nearest pool. It’s not my size that’s stopping me from going now. My old swimsuit is beyond worn out and the reward of a new suit combined with the joy of swimming is my motivation.

I do enjoy swimming, but I can’t remember the last time I went swimming! For a few years we swam at a quarry in Madison, but it’s since closed, and we don’t have a pool, we’re not near the ocean, and I have no desire to swim in the nearby lakes or rivers. I think we need a pool. And since we’re not in a subdivision anymore, we could have an above-ground pool and no neighborhood organization to stop us!

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My mom had knee replacement surgery a few years back. The sutures thing – get used to it. She pulled sutures out of her skin for a couple of years. She mentioned it to her doctor and he said that it happens to some patients. It’s like your body doesn’t dissolve the sutures like “normal” people. My mom said she is just “too sweet”. Mosquitoes don’t attack my mom either. Do you have problems with mosquitoes biting you? I understand the cool gross thing. She’s pulled them out in front of me several times. She said when the sutures work up to the skin, they act like she has a black head. She would squeeze it to pop the suture through the skin and out comes the tweezers. Hers are normally only about an inch long.

I do occasionally get mosquito bites, but I don’t have a big problem with mosquitoes. I have to say, having sutures pop up and needing to be popped like blackheads, well, it’s gross but it sounds kinda cool, too. I can’t help it, I’m a popper!

So since the pet store had a bunch of kittens, sounds like you will get to keep custody of the young’ns a lil longer. I was starting to worry. I figure they will be going to the vet very soon and then off to the store for adoption. I’m sure you are willing to hold on to the kittens a little while longer! I cannot figure out why Kara is still so protective of her babies. You think she’d want to get them out of her “fur” for awhile. Are they still nursing?

The kittens and Kara are going to go to be spayed and neutered the week after July 4th. After that’s done, once there’s room at the pet store, they’ll be going. I expect that the kittens will be going before Kara, and that Kara will be hanging out here for a while. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get her socialized around other cats before space is available at the pet store.

I think it’s mostly habit that has Kara still so protective of her babies.

The babies had a long nursing session earlier this week. What happens most often lately is that they see Kara laying there, they go over and start sniffing around, sometimes they even get a moment or two of nursing in, and then Kara gets up and walks off.

“Seriously.”

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My best friend and I are taking our kids (mine’s 9, hers are 7 and 6) to the Smoky Mountains for a few days. We know we are going to spend some time at Dollywood, but we’d like to do something in Gatlinburg, too. Since you’ve been there 30 gazillion times: What are the MUST see things in Gatlinburg? ARE there any must see things there? Or is it one of those places where just walking around for a day will do? Looks like there are a metric shit ton of Ripley’s-related things!

I’m going to cut and paste from an email I’ve sent out so that I don’t have to strain my brain to remember all this stuff.

I have no idea if this sort of thing interests you, but Zorbing has come to Pigeon Forge, and I’ve already told Fred that if he doesn’t take me Zorbing in Pigeon Forge this summer, I will go there ALONE, because it looks like the coolest thing on earth.

I always recommend that everyone take a day, go into Gatlinburg, park off the main strip, and just walk the entire strip from one end to the other. There are a billion little shops – if there’s something you want, chances are good you’ll be able to find it in one of those little shops. Also, the people-watching is really good!

Places we always, always eat in Gatlinburg are:

The Alamo (we usually go to the one in Pigeon Forge, though, I don’t know why. If you’re looking to drink with dinner (or lunch), you’ll want to go to the one in Gatlinburg, since Pigeon Forge is a dry… city? County? Whatever, they don’t serve alcohol in PF. Or they didn’t the last time I noticed; that may have changed.)

Blaine’s Grill and Bar (on the strip in Gatlinburg)

Bennett Pit BBQ (really good BBQ!)

That’s about it, actually – we try to try out one new restaurant every time we go, but the three I mentioned are our favorites. We usually eat lunch at a restaurant, then get a pizza or sandwiches in the evening because the restaurants tend to be busier in the evening.

Oh! When I was in the area at Christmas a couple of years ago, we had lunch at a Japanese Steak house in Pigeon Forge and it was REALLY good. I can’t remember the name of it, but it’s on the main strip in Pigeon Forge (if you’re in Pigeon Forge headed toward Gatlinburg, it’s on the right side); I highly recommend it.

And a word of advice – if you’re going to eat breakfast, stick to Pigeon Forge and hit one of the pancake houses there (or one of the Cracker Barrels!). There aren’t as many in Gatlinburg, and they always have long, long lines.

Places to visit, off the top of my head – Gatlinburg has a nice aquarium; we’ve been there a couple of times, and enjoyed ourselves even when we didn’t have a kid with us. If you’re up for hiking, the Smoky Mountain National Forest has a lot of nice hikes (though I’ve really only done one, the Laurel Falls hike). If you’re just up for a pretty drive, the drive through the National Forest and into Cherokee is gorgeous on a nice day and there are lots of little waterfalls you can see from the road. Also, the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail is absolutely gorgeous. I’ve got a thing for waterfalls, and this drive has a ton of them.

Pigeon Forge has plenty of shopping, and they have the Smoky Mountain Cat House and Smoky Mountain Dog House near the Old Mill. We like to visit HHI (totally cheesy) and then walk back to the shops around the Mill, then cut across the street to the Cat and Dog houses.

While you’re in Gatlinburg, if they’re running the ski lift to the top of the mountain (and you’re not scared of heights), it’s totally worth the price; the scenery is breathtaking. And so is the view from the Space Needle in the middle of downtown Gatlinburg.

Okay, that’s all I’m thinking of off the top of my head. I’m sure I’ve forgotten something, but those are the high points. It’s been more than a year since I’ve been to the area, and I’m really starting to miss it!

We’ve never been to any of the shows, but I understand they’re good in a kind of hokey way. If you go to one and like it, let me know so I can keep it in mind for the next trip!

Also, Kinzie added:

Been going there all my life. The kids will likely enjoy the rock shops. There are a ton of toy stores and knick-knack places. Pancake Pantry has the Best. Food. Ever. (I recommend the Continental French Toast and the Banana-Pineapple Triumph. INDEED.) and you get to watch them make taffy and candy apples next door while you wait in line. Get some cinnamon bread from The Donut Friar in The Village while you’re there. Go to Ober Gatlinburg and ride the Alpine Slide (3x should be plenty for the kids – maybe just one). There is a lot of people-watching to be done in the evenings on the main strip, if you’re into that. Keep an eye out for magic stores and the like. Indoor mini-golf is fun. And Pigeon Forge has a ton of outdoor places with go-carts and water slides and so forth.

GOD, I WANT TO GO TO GATLINBURG!!!!! Can’t the pigs and chickens and cats take care of themselves?!

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Are you trying to lose more weight or just maintain?

I’m pretty happy at this size, so I plan to just maintain.

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Will Kara be returned to the shelter along with the kittens?

She’ll be going to the pet store to be adopted, but she’ll probably stay here for a while longer. Hopefully she’ll chill out a little and be a little less feisty with our cats.

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There used to be an Amish colony close by and every year they had a big fall festival and sold all sorts of things. I looked forward to going. They weren’t real friendly people, but that was their way. I don’t believe they would hurt anybody.

Yeah, the Amish are known to be very peaceful. I don’t think they’d hurt us, they’re just intimidating. It’s the lack of smiling, I guess. I really think they’re just very reserved and a little shy. Also, I worry about inadvertently offending them so I always make Fred deal with them – and they scare him a little, too. The unknown frightens us both. We are big scaredy-cats, have I mentioned?

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Whatcha gonna do with all that junk

All that junk inside your trunk?????????

heh…just kidding! You look really great; and I’ve gotta say, that is a nice ass! Whenever I lose weight, mine just gets flatter and flatter. I got no junk, no junk, no junk inside my trunk…

I’m gonna get get get get you drunk, get you drunk, get you love drunk off my hump. My hump, my hump. Etc.

Damn you for putting that song in my head! I’ve been singing Baby Got Back (because I just saw the episode of Friends where Ross and Rachel sing it to Emma to make her laugh), and it adapts nicely to a song I can sing to the cats (“I like THAT BOOG and I cannot lie, you other kitties can’t DENY, that when a cat stalks in with an itty bitty hate and a little stump in your FACE, you get HISSY!” and then it kind of breaks down from there, shaddup). But then, I suppose that My Hump, given that “hump” and “stump” rhyme, won’t be a difficult adaptation, either.

I have to say, I don’t think my butt looks bad. It probably helps that I started out with a bubble butt, so I didn’t end up with the dreaded flat ass that people have the tendency to develop after a lower body lift.

Annnnd let’s move on from my ass, shall we?

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I’m not a perv or anything (yeah right) but can we see a picture of yer can/tush/butt full on please? I’m curious to know if the ass matches the tummy!

No, I think you guys have seen about as much of my ass as you’re going to. 🙂

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Hope there’s time to get this in for the Friday questions: Any ideas on what would cause a ~4 month old kitten to suddenly revert back to nursing behavior? We got Cassie at the beginning of May; she was listed as being 8 weeks and 3 (2?) days when we got her. She never exhibited any nursing behavior at all (except occasional kneading, which all my cats do).

In the last four days, I’ve noticed her being VERY aggressive in attempts to nurse on one particular pillow I have (it’s got a “furry” cover), to the point that I have to shoo her off of it because she’s biting into it and trying to rip the cover off. My first thoughts were that she was losing kitten-teeth and was just looking for something to teethe on, but the more I watch her, it seems like she’s trying to nurse and gets frustrated and starts biting and tearing at it as a result of frustration.

Yesterday and today, I noticed that she has been trying to nurse on the two more tolerant older cats – both male, and not appreciative of her efforts, to say the least. I had to break up a fight this afternoon when Packer finally lost his temper and whapped the crap out of her for several minutes – but Cassie still wouldn’t leave him alone. (Bill has hissed and spat at her a few times, but otherwise just keeps moving out of her way, and Lord help her if she ever tries it on Mr.T.)

Any ideas as to why, after nearly two months, she’s suddenly decided she wants to nurse again? And how I can redirect her to keep her from getting her ass kicked? Based on how viciously she bites, chews, and pulls on the pillow in between attempts to suckle, I can understand the older cats not putting up with her, but I don’t want her to get her ass kicked all the time. I don’t want to have to separate them, either, though, so… Suggestions?

I don’t know what would cause her to suddenly start trying to nurse again (maybe a reader will have some words of wisdom?), but I can tell you that of the nursing kittens I’ve had in the past, they all really like to go for the faux sheepskin beds we have all over the place, like this one. I’ve also heard that they really like anything made of wool. It’s certainly worth a try!

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Kittens are doing fine. Kara, on the other hand, is about to drive me batty. She wants the hell OUT of the upstairs, she wants IN the rest of the house, so she sits at the bottom of the stairs and howls. She has a VERY piercing meow. I blame this on Fred, who lets her out for a trip around the downstairs every time she meows. Damn him. We let her out of the upstairs last night, and there were some tense moments, but she stayed out for a few hours, and no one died. Progress!

The kittens, cute as ever. Here they are in the second part of their “9 week old kittens” video. Now that they’re 10 weeks old!

And here they are in MPG format.

What a difference 10 weeks makes, huh?

River.

Inara.

Kaylee.

Zoe.

Lots of cute kitten pics uploaded over at Flickr today.

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Newt keeps an eye on things.

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Previously
2007: Is it just me, or do these look like weirdly posed scenes, like something you’d see in the JC Penney catalog? I imagine a photographer yelling “Frick! You WANT him, you want him with every feather on your body, but Sugarbutt! You don’t even notice Frick, you’re just standing there being beautiful. Be beautiful, Sugarbutt! Be beautiful and feisty and unattainable, and Frick! Want him! Want him badly, but sadly, knowing that you can never have someone that beautiful. He’s out of your league! PERFECT!”
2006: The meals sucked, but we got t-shirts that were pretty cute, so I guess it all worked out.
2005: Can I sue for emotional distress?
2004: No entry.
2003: I never said I had a long attention span.
2002: You can imagine the zany situations.
2001: No entry.
2000: Beggars can’t be choosers, I suppose.

Last night for dinner we had green tomato chili, which I made last July and then froze; I thawed it out and cooked it in the crock pot all day yesterday and it was DAMN good, although I forgot to put the cornstarch in three hours before it was finished, so according to Fred it was “kind of watery.” We also had green beans using Pioneer Woman’s Fresh Green Beans One Way, and they were FABULOUS, although we didn’t have a red pepper (and anyways, I don’t like bell peppers) and for some reason the broth didn’t boil away, so there was no caramelization. I don’t know why the broth didn’t boil away, I followed the directions to the letter, but like I said, the beans were really, really good anyway. And we ALSO had yellow squash. Smocha posted in my comments: Slice up the squash …sprinkle your baking sheet with olive oil. Lay all the squash flat, in one layer. Sprinkle the squash with shredded Parmesan cheese and bake for about 20 minutes . That’s what I did, and OH MY GOD SO GOOD. Cooking it so simply really brought out the flavor of the squash. I also sliced up some eggplant, but I sliced them too thinly and they burned. Next time I’ll use the nonstick baking pans ’cause the squash stuck to the pan, but it was fabulous anyway. SO GOOD. Though I used grated parmesan because that’s all we had on hand. Maybe I’ll pick up some shredded this weekend and try again.

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Yesterday marked four weeks since my surgery, so I decided it was time to go back to cleaning out the litter boxes. Fred didn’t argue with me at all, since he HATES cleaning the litter boxes. Not only did I clean the litter boxes, I did laundry, I filled bird feeders, I watered the plants on my front porch. I half expected to be achy at bed time, but I was fine, and I slept like a rock, and this morning I continue to be fine. Guess I didn’t overdo it!

I’m still not lifting heavy things, which means that when I wanted to hang Fred’s laundry out on the line, I had to put the wet laundry in a basket, then drag it down the stairs and across the lawn. When it was dry, I took down and put away his laundry in stages so I didn’t have to lift all that laundry at once OR drag the basket through the house.

This weekend I’ll probably give vacuuming a try and give the Roomba a break. I’m on a roll!

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My ‘thing’ would be that stuff needs to be put back where it belongs. I HATE looking for something that has been misplaced. In my perfect world, I could lay hands on anything in the house in pitch dark conditions…. but since I live with 3 other people, ain’t gonna happen anytime soon

In theory, my “thing” would be having stuff put back where it belongs, but in reality after I, say, use a pair of scissors I just lay them down wherever I happen to be, and wander off. And then the next day when I’m looking for the scissors that BELONG in my desk drawer, I have a screaming hissy fit because SOMEONE took my scissors and OMG why does NO ONE ever put ANYTHING back where it BELONGS, goddamnit!

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Oh And.. I have to speak up for Antibacterial hand sanitizer users. My family uses it a LOT but that’s because my dad is fighting cancer and is on chemotherapy. Hence his immune system is not what it used to be. So.. we’re cautious around him but when I’m at school? LET THE GERMS COMMENCE.

I suppose that’s understandable, though perhaps your father should just man up and kick some germ ass!

I kid.

“Let the germs commence” should totally be my new tagline, dontchathink?

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I have to sing the praises of the “Green Bags”. https://www.greenbags.com/ They have really helped my spoiled fruits and vegetables problem. I had a head of iceburg lettuce, which normally gets all “rusty” in about 3 seconds flat, in a green bag for A MONTH and it was still fresh, crisp and not rusty at all. I LOVE ME SOME GREEN BAGS. I haven’t tried them with blueberries, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they helped.

With all the fresh produce you guys have coming from the garden shortly, I bet they’d be a good investment. They can be reused several times by just rinsing them out and letting them dry.

But then…

This is a belated comment about the Green Bags that somebody mentioned a few days ago. I was psyched, so went to the website to order some–ordered 5 sets of 20, at 9.95 a set, plus Shipping and Handling. Which the website said would be 9.95 for an order between $25.01 and $50.00. Had I really been paying attention, I’d have ordered 6 sets, because the website offered free shipping for orders over $50.00. Anyway, I got a confirmation email showing my order, which totaled 49.70, plus P&H of–get this–$34.95!!!! So I called to either get the postage corrected or cancel the order, and the customer service rep said she couldn’t do anything b/c the order wouldn’t be posted for 24 hours, so I’d have to call back. That was Friday. Called back today (weekend phone call said closed until Monday) and found–oh yeah–the order had “already shipped”. Asked to talk to supervisor–who kept me on hold for over 30 minutes while she “checked”. She said the website said it would be $7.75 or some such PER $9.95 order. Turns out the website I used–www.greenbagsstore.com–was not the website her company intended me to use, and they wanted to know where I got the web address. I said it came from a link to a link on a blog, and didn’t give further info. They finally agreed to refund me the difference between the $34 charge and the $9.95 charge I had agreed to, but they weren’t at all contrite. SO I’m posting this here, as an alert to Robyn’s readers, that this company uses deceptive practices and will overcharge like crazy if you order from them. I myself won’t order from them again. Grrrr. Makes me so mad when people take advantage of consumers! Readers–Any ideas about consumer websites I can post this to, to warn other would-be customers?

Also:

For Alice: http://sutori.com/

Alice, out of curiosity, how’d you get from greenbags.com to greenbagsstore.com? Did you just remember the name of the product and Google it, or did you click on a link somewhere on greenbags.com that brought you to the other?

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Hayden Christensen was also pretty good in “Shattered Glass” if you’re interested.

We actually saw that, and I agree. Fred’s a Hayden hatah, though, and will not be convinced that he might have some acting talent.

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Miz Poo is a tortie? Is that tortoise shell? What’s the diff between that and calico???

Elayne beat me to the answer:

Nicole: Calicos have fairly solid, distinct patches of the three colors (“red,” black/brown, and white), while on tortoiseshells the colors are blended, frequently giving a “mottled” appearance, and there is less (or no) white. Most tortoiseshell cats I’ve seen tend to have black, “red,” and a creamy yellow-orange color, rather than any white.

Wiki has a page about the differences.

Like Elayne said, when the colors are “mixed” they’re considered torties; when the colors are mostly distinct from one another, they’re calicos. Miz Poo is, I think, considered a tortie and white. It’s all really kind of confusing!

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You can actually make sport of killing the flies …

Despite the fact that the web page claims that it poses no risk to pets or humans, does anyone not immediately imagine me zapping myself with that thing? Zapping myself repeatedly, even?

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I have a question for your readers…. I have worn out my fave shorts (cotton/lycra blend) that used to be sold at Avenue, and cannot find any plus size cotton/lycra blend shorts anywhere… help! They are the only type that fits nicely and looks halfway decent.

Readers, suggestions?

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I also wanted to mention that we have a cat with FIV that can’t be around our other cats, so we have separated our house into two areas. My husband built a sliding gate for our house out of white plastic lattice purchased from Lowes. It works great, looks cute, it is taller than a regular baby gate and it slides open and closed very easily so you can go from one room to the next with out having to take the gates down and put them back up again. And it is not solid like a regular door so the two parts of the house are not sealed from each other.

and

Something a friend of mine did for her child, which I thought was awesome, was to put a pretty antique style wooden-framed screen door with a latch on an interior door frame. It is brilliant – the room is closed off, but you can still see inside, and air can get through, and it is really easy to get through instead of taking baby gates down.

I originally kind of imagined Fred building something along the lines of a screen door, only instead of permanently mounting it, he could put two hooks on each side of the door so that if I wanted to go upstairs, I could lift it out, step through, then put it back. I like the antique style screen door idea! I don’t know if Fred would go along with that, though, I’ll have to work on him a little.

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Hi Robyn, curious minds want to know, why didn’t you return the pillow cases while you were still in the parking lot?

‘Cause I didn’t want to be late for the movie! As it turned out, I had plenty of time and could have returned them, but I always prefer to be early rather than late.

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What I don’t understand is white or cream colored pants, especially traveling. I’m always afraid I’m going to sit in something while visiting a tourist attraction or theme park.

I don’t wear white or cream colored ANYTHING, because I am such a slob that the pants or shirt would be stained in ten minutes flat. I’m a dribbler.

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I wonder why Shawn felt the need to introduce himself. And man, I hate it when I tell someone “You have the wrong number” and they respond with “Who is this?” HAAAAAAATE. “Who this is” is NOYGDMFB, all YOU need to know is that it is not the person you wanted it to be.

I know I’ve bitched about this before, but I absolutely LOATHE it when someone calls for Fred and I say “He’s not here, may I take a message?”, and then they pause and say “Who’s this?” I always want to yell “It’s the person who answered the phone, what the fuck do you WANT?” I mean, what the fuck? Who do they need to know who it is before they leave a message? GAH.

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I have a serious question because I am at my wit’s end with my roommates cat. This cat will not use a litter box, the box is spotlessly clean. However this cat will urinate and defecate on the floor, right in front of you, all the time as IF you’re not even there. My roommates have put her outside on several occasions, the problem and i am not lying…she’s so fat she can’t clean herself. It’s Georgia, it’s hot, she stinks, flies….maggots…it’s GROSS, then they have to clean her.

Her favorite places to go are in the dining room and the kitchen. She use to use the carpet in my room, until I banned her from that area, ripped up and replaced the carpet.

Any ideas? Truth be told, they don’t take very good care of her and I don’t think she’s been to a vet but once in her lifetime.

For her, a trip to the vet, immediately, or (preferably) another home. If she’s never been to the vet and their solution is to put her outside so they don’t have to deal with her, that’s just… ugh. It would be kinder to take her to a shelter than to leave her in that kind of situation.

For you, I say time to move or get new roommates!

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I didn’t realize how big the kittens had gotten until I saw that picture of Zoe nursing. OMG they are so big! tell them to stop growing!

I wish they would! They’re HUGE now, especially River, who’s well over 3 pounds. If I could keep them this size and this age forever, you bet I would.

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You have a Sony camera. Don’t you love Sony! I just got a new one and man I bet I have taken 5000 pictures.

We’ve always had Sony digital cameras and absolutely love them. We each have a Sony Cybershot DSCP200 (I carry mine around in my purse most of the time), and we share a Sony Alpha A100. Sometimes I prefer the smaller camera because it’s easier to carry around. The big camera takes some awesome pictures, though.

I think it’s about time to upgrade the smaller camera. Just because!

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Gael over at Pop Culture junk mail did a blurb about the terrified pickles last week. I’m sure thats what your searcher was looking for.

and

Huh; until the links to the site with the actual terrified pickles, I would have thought it was a link to this lady who has a fear of pickles.

First of all, I am disappointed to find out that Terrified Pickles is not, in fact, the name of a band. Secondly, that girl in the video? Bless her heart, but man. What a freak! I cannot believe the Maury Povich show is still on. I loved Maury back when he hosted A Current Affair, he was delightfully snarky, but that show of his – man, what a cut-rate piece of shit he’s got going on there.

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it’s those pickles you talked about that were the greatest ever. I think I may have seen them in the grocery store soon after that, but they have a sweetness to them and I cannot DO sweet pickles at all. So it’s a name brand, but it’s an odd-flavored pickle. Or something.

Wickles! Those things rock, but when I was visiting Nance, she had a particularly spicy jar of them, and I swear my tongue about burst into flames. Someone sent me a canning recipe that’s supposed to be just like Wickles – I can’t wait to try it out.

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I too don’t always wash my hands after using the toilet at home if I haven’t gotten anything on them BUT I will wash my hands every time if I am using a public toilet because who knows what the person before me had on their hands and then flushed the toilet.

and

#1 is public bathrooms. After I wash my hands there I must open the door with my paper towel.

I don’t use a paper towel to open the door to a public bathroom (my sister does and I always mock her), but I DO wash my hands after using the facilities. And then I’m sure I germ myself back up when I open the door. And then probably I chew on my nails or touch my face and then I am COVERED IN GERMS.

How many of you shuddered and ran for your hand sanitizer after reading that?

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any hair anywhere in my hotel room grosses me out

Hair does not gross me out. Is hair particularly germy? I mean, I wouldn’t particularly want to see pubic hairs laying all over the place or anything, but hair from someone’s head doesn’t worry me. Is hair phobia a widespread thing?

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I think my only other *thing* is keeping the kitchen clean. I cannot go to bed with dirty dishes piled up.

In the last several months, it’s gotten so that I’m the same way. The last thing I do before bed is make sure the dishwasher is loaded, set to wash in the middle of the night, and the counters are wiped down. I think it’s nice to be able to walk into a clean kitchen the next morning instead of having to immediately start cleaning it.

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OK, I guess you’re not as bad as this lady. 😛

I had NO IDEA hedgehogs could swim. That is about the cutest thing on earth.

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Why do you have millions of tomatoes? I have 6 tomato plants and maybe a total of 7 tomatoes. WTF??

You’d have to ask Fred, but it probably has something to do with the fact that he’s out there every single day weeding, watering, and sweet-talking every plant in the garden. As far as the assmaters, I bet the fact that they started life in a little plug of chicken poo (ie, fertilizer!) gave them a strong start.

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Oh, also …I’m dying to see your new stomach!

If you can handle the still-scabby scar, the stretch marks and the CLEARLY man-made belly button, you’re free to check it out here and here. Oh, and my skin’s so red because I had just taken the binder off. Those are my fancy size 8/10 shorts from Wal-Mart I’m wearing in those pictures, by the way.

(Those two links will pop up windows. If they don’t work for you, you can see the belleh pics here and here.)

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The final kitten movie from when they were 6 weeks old! Warning: May cause cavities due to the sheer utter adorable cuteness.

See it here in MPG format.

I love the look on Kaylee’s face like “Oh, UGH. Smells like HUMAN! How can they stand that smell?”

Closeup of nursing NINE WEEK OLD kittens. Momma didn’t put up with it for long.

All four kittens are present and accounted for – if you look behind River (the gray tabby in the middle), you’ll see Kaylee’s legs kicked out. She’s actually underneath him. I have no idea how that can be comfortable, but that’s always been her nursing position.

Oh, and for comparison purposes, here they are at five days old:

Lots more kitten pics over at Flickr. There are several that show off Zoe’s gorgeous stripes especially well.

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Miss Momma takes a cue from the chickens and tries out a dust bath for herself. She kinda likes it.

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Previously
2007: And since it’s still muddy in the garden, no weeding for me again today. Darn!
2006: “Save your breath,” I said, gasping for air. “I don’t believe a word you say, you lying liar.”
2005: “Spot caught a copperhead!”
2004: No entry.
2003: Poor Gram.
2002: Oh, quit with the gasps of horror.
2001: Lynn is very very nice, but as I’ve mentioned, she doesn’t appreciate the beauty of silence.
2000: I was giving out dirty looks left and right, let me tell you.