Vote for Gracie! (Thank you!) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ If you have BBC America and aren’t already watching 24 Hours in the ER, I highly recommend it. Fred and I watched the first two episodes of … Continue reading “10/4/11 – Tuesday”
If you have BBC America and aren’t already watching 24 Hours in the ER, I highly recommend it. Fred and I watched the first two episodes of it, and although there were times when I had to look away, or when my metaphorical balls crawled up into my body and hid (especially every single time they talked about the guy who was hit by a bus and then “folded in half” GAH), it immediately became one of my favorite shows.
The only problem was that since it was filmed in London, I have one hell of a time figuring out what they’re saying sometimes. I had to ask Fred several times “What the fuck are they saying?” and he’d translate for me.
I swear to god it’s about time to turn on the closed captioning when I watch TV.
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I got super excited yesterday afternoon, because someone was unloading a big backhoe on the access road across the street. The guy who is supposedly, someday, perhaps, no-really-I’m-gonna dig our goddamn POND told Fred they’d have to unload the equipment across the street and bring it across the street and down the lawn to get to the back forty because they didn’t want to park on the driveway for fear that they’d crack the driveway.
As it turned out, though, the backhoe was meant to do work on the land across the street, and they worked diligently all afternoon.
This whole thing where you hire someone to do shit is just SO FUCKING FRUSTRATING. It’s like we’re standing here with cash in our hands, trying to throw it at anyone to DIG THE FUCKING POND, and they’re all like “Um, yeah. We’ll get right on that. In seven to ten days. I mean two weeks. Oops, it sprinkled, it’ll be another month.”
The economy might be in the shitter, but apparently the guys who dig ponds aren’t hurting any.
After the pond guy came out last week and walked all over the property with Fred and discussed what exactly needed doing, he told Fred that he thought they’d be starting “The beginning of next week” – ie, yesterday. No one showed up. No one called. Nada, nothing, zip.
As far as I’m concerned, he moseyed his way out of a job, and last night Fred called the guy who dug the original pond, the one that we filled in a few years ago.
We’ll see if we get anywhere with HIM.
I say if this pond-digging nonsense doesn’t work out, we dig a random big hole in the middle of the back forty, call it good enough, and buy new living room furniture with the money we saved.
(I’m not holding my breath on the new furniture.)
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Charlie Peppers has been allowed some limited time out of the guest bedroom, running around the house with the big Peppers (and the rest of the cats). Patty Peppers has been out once or twice, but it makes her kind of nervous, so she tends to hide under the couch until we pull her out and put her back in the guest bedroom.
Both of the little ones are over two pounds now, but they’ve just turned two months old, so I’m not in any hurry to spay and neuter them. I’ll wait another month, most likely, and do it around the time they turn three months. Adoptions seem to have slowed down a bit, so there’s no rush to get them ready to go.
Charlie has turned into a total lovebug, and Patty’s starting to come around, too. Fred finally heard her voice for the first time yesterday (she’s been giving us the silent meows up ’til then). Her first instinct is to run and hide when the door opens, but she comes back out pretty quickly.
Charlie, keeping an eye on things.
“Tastes like.. chicken! I better send one of these to Dorothy, stat!”
I know that looks like some sort of dead rodent next to Charlie, but it’s not.
It’s NOT.
Poor, sad, deprived kittens with no toys to speak of.
“MY GOD, LADY, BEHIND YOU! IT’S A SERIAL KILLER AND HE HAS A KNIFE IN EACH HAND AND HE’S GOING TO EAT YOUR LIVER WITH FAVA BEANS AND A FINE CHIANTI! Oh, wait. No, there’s nothing there. Trick of the light. My bad.”
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Molly Peppers shows off her long, elegant fingers.
She is just SO pretty.
Not the best picture, but this is what she likes to do, lay there and have her belly rubbed while she makes biscuits on my leg. When I think of what a scared little hisser she was when we got her, it just blows my mind. She’s always the first to run over and demand love!
“‘Allo, lady. You see that I have razor-sharp claws on my back feet as well as my first? The better to mess you UP with, my dear. Now admire my one white whisker, give me a gentle pet, and be on your way.”
“Pet. Me. NOW.”
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These clothes were laying on the table, and Elwood decided it would be the perfect place to hang out.
Jake, on the other hand, prefers the bed. He’s no dummy!
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Previously 2010: Oh skimmers, why can’t I quit you?
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry. 2007: No, my number one concern is that a woman, somewhere in Alabama, might have purchased a device to ensure that she’s able to get off. 2006: The stinkin’ kitten is not so cute! 2005: Annnnnnnnd that’s just a little glimpse into the dorkiness that is my life. 2004: ARRRGH.
2003: No entry. 2002: Wow. Apparently I’ve been doing the pet store thing for three years now. 2001: Day Zero. 2000: I’m back!
New month, new banner! This was created by Christine, who’s done so many of my banners in the past. Doesn’t Joe Bob look faaaabulous in his fancy mask? Thanks, Christine. As always, you rock! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ … Continue reading “10/3/11 – Monday”
New month, new banner!
This was created by Christine, who’s done so many of my banners in the past. Doesn’t Joe Bob look faaaabulous in his fancy mask?
I went to Walmart last week for a reason I no longer remember. I desperately needed… something. What the hell did I need?
ANYway. I went to Walmart, and while I was there I wandered past a FUN da-middles* mixes display, and I impulse tossed a box of the chocolate cupcakes with vanilla filling into the cart, and I bought that box along with everything else I was buying, whatever the hell that might be, and as I was driving home, I thought “Why the fuck did I buy that box? I am three million percent sure that I could have found a recipe online that would give me a better end result than I’m going to get with this mix, I am such a fucking impulse buying lemming ASSHOLE.”
So, Friday evening I made those cupcakes. And the filling? Not a tasty vanilla filling, but really more of a Fluff-type filling which, don’t get me WRONG, I like Fluff well enough, but only when peanut butter is involved, and it wasn’t quite what I was looking for in a cupcake filling.
ANYway.
So I took a couple of bites of the finished cupcake, and I was like “Meh. This is not very tasty.”
Then I ate the rest of the cupcake.
(YOU SHUT UP.)
I said to Fred “Those suck” and then we went to watch TV. Halfway through The Office, I got THE WORST PAIN EVER in my gut, and I sat up and got all groany and drama queeny enough that Fred was offering to take me to the emergency room, and I was all “I guess I’m dumping, but it’s too low to be stomach pain and too high to be (censored), GAH THIS HURTS.”
I went to the bathroom and I’ll not share details with you (YOU ARE WELCOME), but things were flying in all directions for about the next five minutes, and when I came back out of the bathroom, I felt ten times better, but still kind of nauseated.
We started watching TV again, and a few minutes later when Fred was fast-forwarding through commercials, he said “Do you think it was the cupcake?”
“First,” I said. “Do not say that word again. Second of all, make sure you give the rest of them to the pigs because I never want to see them again.”
Fred laughed and laughed about me telling him to stop talking about FOOD when I was nauseated, but damn. Have you ever noticed that when you’re on the verge of barfing, no one ever EVER wants to talk about anything but food when that’s the last thing on earth you want to talk about?
“Was it the sardines, do you think? Was it the softly scrambled, still wet eggs? Was it the bacon where you were eating it and found a piece of bone? Was it that you ate half the chicken and then realized it wasn’t completely cooked? Could that have been it?”
GAH. STOP.
In conclusion: skip those stupid fucking cupcakes, they suck.
*Worst, stupidest, goofiest name on the face of the earth. Seriously, I’d like to find out who came up with the name so I can punch them right in their stupid face. The more I think about the name, the more annoyed I get. SERIOUSLY. What a godawful name.
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It was actually a banner weekend for the pigs – I spent time Saturday making apple dumplings from a recipe I won’t link because I didn’t really like the end result, and then I ate one and gave the rest to the pigs.
I think the pigs probably like it when I bake, since my average appears to be about 50/50 on whether it comes out any good, and if I don’t like what I end up with, they’re more than happy to take care of it.
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I tend to go a long time between checking my PO Box because I forget to, and it doesn’t get a lot of traffic, so sometimes weeks and weeks will go by before I remember to check it. When I was out running errands yesterday, I decided to stop and check.
Imagine my surprise when I had a package from the fabulous Charlene Butterbean!
As it turned out, reader Mari had ordered some Itty Bitty Kitty Committee sparkle balls and had them sent to me – and Laurie had (at Charlene’s directions, I’m sure) included some gorgeous postcards!
Well, naturally I had to see what the reaction was from the kitties. First, I tried Alice.
“I am sleeping, lady. You go ‘way.”
And then I took them in to Charlie and Patty Peppers to see what their reaction would be.
First Charlie knocked a blue sparkle ball off the bed and ran off to kick it around the room (he REALLY liked his sparkle ball, but every picture I got of him was blurry!)
And then Patty chose a pretty pink sparkle ball.
While Patty and Charlie played with their sparkle balls, I took some out to the living room, where the big Peppers were hanging out.
Everett’s pretty sure pink is his color.
Sally thinks pink goes nicely with her collar.
Molly, also a fan of pink.
Everett thinks perhaps blue works better for him…
Or red?
Harlan comes in to see what all the fuss is about.
Eventually, Everett settled on blue.
Thank you to Mari and Charlene (Laurie) for the cool gifts. I highly recommend the sparkle balls, and the post cards are even more gorgeous in person – and they’re nice, sturdy postcards, not those flimsy ones you find in the store. You can get your own post cards or sparkle balls here!
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“Hey…”
“What the – ?”
In the end, Alice smacked the ball and stomped off to take a nap.
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Previously
2010: No entry.
2009: No entry. 2008: Wouldn’t I be an excellent slacker vacation host? 2007: I was a little shaky as I looked around the first floor of the garage, then I said “I have a gun and I’m coming up there!” and I went upstairs. 2006: He’s always a party pooper. 2005: If I hadn’ta covered my head with my hands, I might be DEAD right now!
2004: No entry. 2003: “No,” Fred said. “You’re the muffinhead. DID SHE STAND OVER YOU AND MAKE YOU INSTALL IT??” 2002: Spanky is the Lance Bass of our family. 2001: I guess if tomorrow’s Day Zero and Friday is Day One, that makes today Day Negative One.
2000: No entry.
New month, new banner coming on Monday! (I’m about to go watch TV and don’t have time to upload it correctly at the moment). It’s another cute and funny one, created by the wonderful Christine! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ … Continue reading “10/1/11 – Saturday”
New month, new banner coming on Monday! (I’m about to go watch TV and don’t have time to upload it correctly at the moment). It’s another cute and funny one, created by the wonderful Christine!
Flashback! (I re-read this the other day in the entry where I originally posted it, in July 2008, and it cracked me up so much that I decided I wanted to post it again.)
The Catpranos.
Starring:
Sugar “Big Boss Sweet Ass” J. Buttocks
Stanley “Booger Eyes” J. Boogerton
Thomas “Black Pussy” J. Cullen
and
Joseph “Smilin’ Joe” J. Robert
When you woke up this morning,
When you woke up this morning,
When you woke up this morning,
You got yourself a gun……
“Smilin’ Joe.”
“Boss! What brings you around these parts?”
“That you even have the temerity to ask, Smilin’ Joe. That gets me so upset I can’t even look at you. It ANGERS me, Joe.”
“Boss?”
“You think word doesn’t get AROUND? You think I don’t KNOW what you’ve been doing?”
“Uh…”
“You think it’s a GOOD sign that I bring Black Pussy and Booger Eyes with me? You think this is a GOOD TIME CHAT? Are we chatting it up here, Joe? You want me to fetch you a cup of catnip? Can I be of SERVICE to you, you fucking assface?”
“Sure! Uh, I mean…”
“You think I don’t look at your stupid smilin’ face and want to smack it clear to the very back of the back forty? You think Black Pussy and Booger Eyes are back there looking around for their HEALTH? You messed up, Smilin’ Joe. You messed up BIG.”
“I…”
“It just makes me so angry, Joe. That you’d act like this when I thought we were FAMILY. After all I’ve done for you, that you’d do this, it breaks my heart and makes me want to break your face. You get me?”
“Um…”
“You see this scar on my arm? You think I got this scar from rolling over and taking it from losers like you? You think just ’cause I got these pink and purple nails I’m some BITCH you can FUCK and then just walk away? I EARNED this scar, these nails. I earned them with HARD work and loyalty and NOT sitting around grinning like a fucking lunatic.”
“You think you move in a vacuum? You think you do shit and people don’t come running to tell me? You think I have NO power in this yard?”
“Boss, I….”
“I can’t even look at you, Joe. You make me sick.”
“LOOK AT ME WHEN I’M REFUSING TO LOOK AT YOU, YOU GRINNING MORONIC MOTHERFUCKER!”
“Are you HEARING me, Joe? You understand what I’m saying to you?”
“Not so much, Boss…”
“You think you can get away with the middle-of-the-night caterwauling, the stalking Black Pussy’s girl – SHE BELONGS TO HIM, JOE – the spraying the bed where I like to lay my weary head, the disappearing and not letting the Big Lady know where you are? You think it’s okay to make her worry and piss her off? You think you can do these things and not pay the price? Booger Eyes, you take care of this. I can’t even be near this douchebag any more.”
“Boogsie, what’d I do?”
“You pissed him OFF, Joe. Did you not understand that very basic fact of life? You pissed him off, and if I were you, I’d pack my collar and cat bed and find a friendlier place to be.”
“Booger Eyes, you ever think of taking care of Big Boss Sweet Ass and taking over yourself? I’m just wondering.”
“That’s not even funny, Joe. Don’t joke about that sort of thing. You scram before I get back or I’m going to have to make you gone. I’m feeling generous today, Joe, so I’m going to give you half an hour. You’re a blithering idiot, but you need to do what’s smart for once.”
“I hear you, Boogie. I appreciate that.”
Watching Booger Eyes and Black Pussy make themselves scarce, Smilin’ Joe wonders just how stu-
Vote for Gracie! (Thank you!) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Have you ever pickled green tomatoes? My husband does it every year and they are sooo good! I haven’t, but maybe I should. We tend not to … Continue reading “9/30/11 – Friday”
Have you ever pickled green tomatoes? My husband does it every year and they are sooo good!
I haven’t, but maybe I should. We tend not to eat much pickled stuff, but I’m thinking that it’s time to make a point of doing so!
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I love George and Gracie! So I know you used to say they are working dogs not pets, has that changed? I think if they decided to stop guarding the flock and the hens were taken by hawks daily you would still decide to keep them.
You know, I’d answer this question, but it truly is a moot point. If they up and decided to stop guarding the flock, I’d have to assume that there was something really wrong with either them or the flock – and I think they’d die from boredom if they didn’t have the chickens to guard. They are really good dogs and if the flock was completely gone for some reason I’m sure we’d keep them – but I still have NO desire to have them in the house, so I imagine we’d have to find something else for them to do!
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As for old man Spanky, he does indeed look good. The first cat late hubby & I ever had lived to be 20, Punkin. We got her the first year we were married, so you can imagine how hard it was to lose her — just old age health problems. I was 40 by then, and had several other cats too, but still. Punkin was almost completely deaf, and she had lost most of her teeth. I guess her eyesight was poor too. I’d have to gently shake her awake, since she could barely hear — sometimes I’d clap my hands over her, and she’d wake up. I’ve never had a cat live that long before, and maybe Spanky will set a new record for a long life. Does he have any health problems as of now?
Spanky has no health problems, amazingly enough! He moves with no problems, his senior bloodwork panel came back good. He’s crazy healthy for such an old guy, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him still walking around howling in five years.
Speaking of Spanky howling, this is from years and years ago (when we lived in Madison, so it may have been 7 or 8 years ago), and still my favorite Spanky movie, even though the quality is terrible:
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Just wondered if you keep a private journal only for you, besides your online journal? Do you use one of the many software available for journaling?
I actually don’t keep a private journal just for myself because I’m pretty sure I’d never take the time to write in it. If I did, I’d likely use the old-fashioned notebook and pen method.
I use WordPress for this site, Love & Hisses, and back when I had the Giveaway site, I used WordPress for that, too. I think it’s easy to use, and if I wanted to use it to journal stuff for myself, it would be easy enough to password. (Though with my luck, I’d forget my damn password!)
I used to use Movable Type, then I decided to switch to WordPress, but I don’t remember (1) how long ago the switch was (though I do know it’s been years and years) or (2) why I decided to switch!
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The movie cracked me up – Elwood MAY have a higher jump than George Costanza, but just barely! 🙂
and
Elwood is pretty slick on his feet for a big fella ay? He doesn’t get much vertical in his leap though does he?
Hey, that kind of mass will only move so far off the ground! 🙂
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Robyn, have you seen these? Chilli Willy. You should grow some next year, just for the giggles. Also, you could’ve had a Willy Peppers!
I totally should! (And Willy Peppers would have been an excellent name!)
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Today’s action series? Fantastic! Have you thought of making a “comic strip” type of book with sets of pictures & comments? Best of “Live Action” Bitchypoo or something less awful. Kidding on the title but serious about the idea. Thoughts?
I’ve thought about putting together a book of all the picture entries I’ve done, but man – I’m not sure I’m up to that much work!
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I thought Fred used to do a lot of hiking….didn’t he used to do that geocaching? I’ll bet there’s a really expensive GPS unit gathering dust!
The GPS Fred had back when he was geocaching would be, compared to the GPS units that are available now, like an 80s cell phone compared to an iPhone. (I also don’t think we have it anymore – and if we do still have it, I have NO idea where we put it!)
Maybe Fred needs a new GPS for Christmas so we can try our hand at geocaching again!
Fred used to hike several times a week, but that stopped pretty much when we bought this house. There’s not a lot of hiking paths convenient to where we are now, unfortunately – though I guess we could certainly drive into Madison and go hiking there!
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Robyn, have y’all been to the Nashville flea market before? If not, it’s really worth the trip. True, it does have some of the same old crap – tube socks, dvd’s, knock-off purses, etc., but out back where the…um…I don’t know what they’re called…big roofed areas that are open on all sides. You can find some *amazing* stuff out there. Lots of antique and vintage stuff, lots of it at really good prices. There are lots of interesting stalls in the enclosed buildings, too. I kind of giggled when you said you’d spend an hour then drive home, because we’ve stayed there four or five hours before, and didn’t come close to seeing everything. If y’all get antsy in October, I highly recommend a visit!
No, we’ve never been, but now I certainly want to go! It won’t be in October (I’ll be recovering from my neck lift revision when the October flea market takes place), but maybe I’ll convince Fred to check it out for real in the Spring. It really sounds like it’d be fun!
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As a looooong time reader, Miz Poo and Spanky are my favorites by default (Okay, mainly Miz Poo) and I must have missed the original post with the cat chart because now I am heartbroken that Miz Poo gets no kitty love. So very sad. And probably entirely her fault, but still, I like to picture her as the “cat who oversees all” that the other cats come to. And on that note, I’ve obviously spent too much time imagining your cats interacting. LOL
Do not cry for Miz Poo, the reason she gets no kitty love at all (except when she’s sound asleep and a kitten climbs into the bed with her) is because she has NO USE for other cats. She doesn’t want them in her space, she doesn’t want them head-butting her, she doesn’t want them snuggling with her, and she will whip out the Paw o’ Doom in no time flat if they invade the bubble. However, she canNOT get enough love from any human who crosses her path. Woe betide anyone who steps through the door and doesn’t pay attention to her, because she will NOT be ignored. I’ve always said that if I put her in a baby carrier and strapped her to me 24/7, she’d be SO happy.
I mean, she’s pretty happy anyway – I’ve never known another cat who purrs constantly the way she does. I go to sleep with her purring in my face and wake up the same way. No wonder I sleep so well!
Ok…so are you taking all these action shots by yourself?? or is Fred assisting?? They are just awesome!!!
The action shots I posted this week of the big Peppers, I had Fred assisting – same with the pictures/ video of Buster, Elwood and Alice. The pictures I took of Charlie in action yesterday, I took alone. It’s easier to get pictures when Fred’s running the feather teaser, but if pressed I can get some fairly decent shots on my own.
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Will Charlie have to have his damaged tooth pulled or is it a kitten tooth?
It’s a kitten tooth – but even if it was a permanent, I don’t think he’d need to have it pulled. It’s just the very tip that chipped off, and it doesn’t interfere with his eating and doesn’t cause him pain. It kind of gives him a jaunty air, actually – I’ll have to see if I can get a picture of it.
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and WHEN are you going to get those poor kittens a few toys!!
I know, isn’t it disgusting? I’d tell y’all that I’ll take pictures of all the cat toys in the house AND the ones I have secreted away in my closet, but I’m too afraid you’d call the people at Hoarders on me!
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Here’s a little something to put a smile on your face.
Crack me UP!
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Seeing the photos of Miz Poo brings back memories. She looks very much like our Sunshine, who passed away in 2001. Sunshine was a ‘talker’. She had a very distinct trill-like meow that she would raise or lower depending on what she was trying to say. She mostly ‘talked’ only when spoken to, and ALWAYS had to have the last word. Just curious if Miz Poo happens to be a talker as well.
Usually Miz Poo does most of her talking when she’s trying to soothe me. If I yell or laugh really hard or get mad, Miz Poo decides that I’m in distress and she must soothe me, and she rubs against me and trills softly at me. If she walks into the room and I greet her, she’ll brighten up and usually responds to me with a trill. For the most part she’s pretty quiet, though.
She’ll go through stages, though, where she finds a toy and decides it’s her “kill” and drags it through the house, keening the entire time. She’s fond of doing that in the middle of the night, and she doesn’t just do it for, oh, ten feet or so. No, she appears to find the toy at the farthest possible point in the house and then drags or carries it through the house, keening as loudly as possible, the entire way to my room where I’m usually yelling “Oh my god, Poo, please stop!!!”
Here’s a video I shot years ago showing what it sounds like (I posted it on YouTube in 2008, but I made the video when we lived in the house in Madison, so it would have been before 2007).
She is SO PROUD of herself!
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Anyone in the NW Virginia area want a very friendly, very purry tortoiseshell kitty who likes belly rubs?
Mrowbecca, send me some pictures, I’ll post ’em!
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My lady cat says that ladies NEVER FART. In a book by Anne Perry, a Victorian lady was said to make a “personal noise”, which cracked my DH up, so now we say that our ladycat makes a “pawsonal noise”. She also reckons that tabby brudders are ALL HORRIBLE*. I must explain that while not suffering from farting, she does suffer from a tabby brother.
*this opinion is not shared by the author of this comment.
How much do I love the phrase “personal noise”? SO. VERY. MUCH.
(Also, Miz Poo suffers from tabby brudders, and she agrees that it’s pretty horrible.)
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What pretty blue eyes the Buster Man has. Or is that just the camera angle?
They’re green, actually – and very pretty, the way they’re dark green in around the pupil and then lighter around the outside.. All of the Bookworms have really really pretty eyes. What’s that, you say? You need proof of that? Well, if I MUST.
Buster (about a year ago) :
Reacher (in February, right before Kathy came and stole him away) :
Corbie in February:
Rhyme, last October:
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Robyn, you *need* one of these! Think of the photo opportunities!!!
That is HILARIOUS!
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How old are the chicks, relatively? Small children, tweens? Never had any, so I’m curious!
At this age – a week to ten days old – I’d call them preschoolers, they still stick pretty close to their mothers. In a couple of weeks they’ll be a little taller and a bit ratty looking as their feathers start to come in, and I’d call them maybe middle-schoolers. I’ll try to remember to get pictures of them as they grow so you can see the various stages!
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Please link the fountain again? Or just give me the name. Does it have ‘pool’ at the top and then cascade down? Is it easy to clean? I am sorry I have not paid attention to it before…
The ceramic fountain that someone else mentioned in my comments was this one, the Pioneer Big Max. It is very very easy to clean, and after you put it together the first time, it’s very easy to take apart, clean, and put back together.
HOWEVER, someone who is a klutz, was cleaning our Big Max a month ago, and dropped the top piece, and it broke. Grrrr.
I did have an extra fountain on hand, the Cat Mate fountain, so I set that up where the Big Max had been, and the cats like it just fine. My cats seem to prefer the fountains where there’s a pool at the top and then the water cascades down over the ones where the water pours out into the bowl at the bottom, so both the Big Max and the Cat Mate are fine with them.
My only issue with the Big Max is that the hum of the motor was loud enough that when I put it in the bathroom across the hall from my bedroom, I could hear the motor through the ear plugs that I wear at night, so it didn’t work for me. At the moment, I’ve got Cat Mate fountains in the laundry room, upstairs in the bathroom, and in both kitten rooms. I like how quiet they are, and I like that they can go in the dishwasher (I run each of them through the dishwasher once a week). They aren’t the prettiest fountains on earth but, well, you’ve seen my house. It’s not like they detract from our fabulous decor!
On a side note, reviews of the Cat Mate fountain on Amazon have pointed out that the pump doesn’t last, and that the company doesn’t sell a replacement for it. My fountains are working okay so far, but I’ll report back when/ if the pumps break!
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I was wondering, if a person has catnip tea, if that person is then found rolling on the floor in delirium?
I spent a little while reading about catnip for humans yesterday, and it appears that catnip has the exact opposite effect on humans. It relieves anxiety, helps with insomnia, and with nightmares. There are a whole list of things catnip helps with. It’s a miracle drug!
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My coworker and I both have kitties who scratch at the door jams. My sweet girl has all but engraved a novel on three door jams around my house and her kitty has one that she is set on destroying. Is there something all natural we can spray on the door jams to get them to stop or is there a commercial spray available that works?
The only thing I can think of to suggest is to try putting double-sided tape on the door jam – cats don’t like the feel of tape on their paws, and they’ll avoid scratching there. I don’t know of any natural cat repellents – that is, I’m sure they’re out there, I just don’t know of them! Anyone out there have suggestions of repellents or other ways to keep cats from scratching on door jams? Please share!
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“OH, scratching post, you are so big and strong!”
::kiss::kiss::kiss::kiss::
(Like YOU never kissed your pillow when you were a kid!)
“Stop kissing the scratching post, WEIRDO, I’ve got places to go!”
“Four o’clock and all is well!”
::fume:: “I was NOT kissing the scratching post. We were having a deep, meaningful conversation!”
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So, one thing that Lucy Peppers does that I have been completely unable to capture on video, is that when you’re petting her, if you start scratching her back, she humps up her back, then she does this very dramatic looking thing where she straightens her legs completely, and she slow-motion flops onto her side. It’s hilarious and impossible to accurately describe, but SO funny.
Fred says she looks very much like Nature Boy Ric Flair when he flops. I didn’t know what he meant (I’m not a wrestling fan), so he sent me the link to this video and I have to say that yeah, she totally does.
I tried for the zillionth time yesterday to get her flop on video, but didn’t really have any luck. I did get a video of all the Peppers milling around, purring their heads off. Crank the sound and ignore the idiot (me) who occasionally says something. It’s a purrapalooza!
She does kind of do a modified flop in the last ten seconds of the video. I’m going to keep trying to get it on video, though!
Molly and Everett watching something. Probably the rest of the litter running around like goofballs.
“What?”
I used too much flash here, but you can see Sally’s stripes, which is neat.
Playing on (and around) the Ham-mick.
“Hey! Where’d everybody go?”
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It’s FRIIIIIIIIIDAY.
And you know what that means!
MORE BEAUTIFUL BOOKWORM BOYS!
Buster, on one of the cat walkways in the kitchen, keeping an eye on… who knows? One of the other cats, I’m sure.
Corbie wondering why, once again, my collapsible laundry basket is sitting under the tree. (Answer: because Tommy dragged it there!)
Buster, investigating.
Corbie and the ears of semi-annoyance.
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Previously 2010: House tour, part one. 2009: Flat Holly 2008: “Paul Newman is dead too! What are the chances that… Oh.”
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry. 2005: I’m a badass, that’s right. 2004: I 2003: In adults, I am anti-”bye-bye”. 2002: Day in the life.
2001: No entry.
2000: No entry.
Vote for Gracie! (Thank you!) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Yesterday, Oldcat did a post about Kara and her kittens and determined that the kittens’ father mostly likely looked a lot like Spanky! Go check it out, … Continue reading “9/28/11 – Kitteh Wednesday”
I swear, that cedar scratching post is one of the best things we’ve ever made. Every single kitten who’s been in that room just loves it like nothing else.
Patty enjoys ripping toys apart to get to the tasty fiberfill center (and got mad at me when I took it away).
Checkin’ out the toys.
Charlie supervises.
“Oooh, what’s THAT?”
::chomp::
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When he’s not jumping for the feather teaser, Everett likes to talk to it.
And yes indeed, Everett DOES have some fearsome claws, doesn’t he? He’s very careful not to use them on humans, though. He knows we’re big wimps (and yes, I do try to keep their claws trimmed, but sometimes it gets away from me.)
Invisible shifting while driving the invisible 18-wheeler.
Well THAT’s an awkward land, Everett.
“Let the party begin, I HAVE ARRIVED!”
Harlan critiques Everett’s form.
Talking to the feathers.
Checking out Harlan’s pot belly.
He flails! He misses!
More talking to the feathers.
Talk…
Talk…
Jump!
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Just in case you thought that the fosters are the only ones who get in on the feather teasin’ fun…
He totally looks like he’s break-dancing here.
This picture makes me dizzy. So I had to see if it made you dizzy, too!
And, a video of the permanents (Elwood, Buster, Alice) making a play for the teaser. What amazes me is how lightly Elwood lands for such a big cat.
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Previously 2010: Also, swearing a lot helps, too.
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry. 2007: Everyone, go forth and give me a “hubba hubba” in your blogs! 2006: YOU’RE WELCOME. 2005: Phear my l33t fotograffic skillz. 2004: Dear Stephen King: Stop defending what you did, and just write the goddamn story.
2003: No entry.
2002: No entry.
2001: No entry.
2000: No entry.
Vote for Gracie! (Thank you!) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Yesterday, my parents had to say goodbye to their sweet dog Benjie. Benjie was such a good guy – he’s one of those dogs who makes people … Continue reading “9/27/11 – Tuesday”
Yesterday, my parents had to say goodbye to their sweet dog Benjie.
Benjie was such a good guy – he’s one of those dogs who makes people like me, who has no interest in having a dog in the house, change their mind. He came with them a couple of times when they visited us, and he was so sweet, he’d just sit there and watch the cats circle him.
The first time he came with them to visit us, a little beagle showed up, and they were immediately the best of friends, running around, playing together, even (if I recall correctly) curling up to rest together, too.
(The lady two doors down eventually adopted that beagle and named her Sugar.)
He was just a real character – everyone who met him loved him.
He traveled all over the place with my parents, and he was a good little travel companion and the best errand assistant.
He will be very much missed.
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You didn’t think that Everett was the only jumpin’ Pepper, did you?
First, Everett displays the correct jumping form, while Molly gets into catching position…
Then Everett’s all “Remember, VERY IMPORTANT: Jazz Hands!”
“No, no, NO! You must BELIEVE that you can flyyyyyyyyyyy! Like THIS!”
“LIFT off! Like so!”
“Jazz hands like this? Am I doin’ this right?”
“Fly! FLYYYY!”
“This doesn’t feel right. You sure this is a real jazz hand? It feels awkward.”
“I am FLYING!”
Sally is awestruck. “Look at his FORM! The pointed TOES! My god, he’s PERFECT!”
Everett says “Yes! YES! That is perfect! Beautiful, perfect jazz hands! Pointed toes! You’re a natural!”
Harlan begins to lose his perfect form.
“Reach for it, Harlan! REACH!”
“I… who taught you the Invisible Motorcycle move? That’s far too advanced for your skill levels!”
“By god. Jazz hands with his BACK paws! He’s a prodigy!”
Later that day, Everett was walking along, minding his own business, when out of NOWHERE, smacking him RIGHT in the face…
Stupid feather teaser.
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Charlie looks like he’s making fun of the size of Patty’s belly.
Charlie givin’ me the ‘tude.
Laughing at his own joke.
More attitude, while Patty’s all “Whuh?”
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Judging by the look on Tommy’s face, there’s either a knife-wielding serial killer behind me, or nothing at all.
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Previously 2010: We are some meatloaf-loving motherfuckers.
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry. 2007: Little kitties on my desk top, little kitties made of fur and hate, little kitties on the gatetop, little kitties, not the same. There’s a gray one and a black one and an orange one and a calico, and they’re all made out of fur and hate and they look not the same. 2006: Hey, we’ll only be living here for another six months or so. Let’s BURN THOSE BRIDGES! 2005: Did I bring “a book” with me? HELL NO I didn’t bring “a book” with me – I brought FIVE books with me. 2004: No offense to you stoners out there, but the Warrens totally look stereotypical stoners.
2003: No entry. 2002: I think I’m going to start calling him The Todd. 2001: Does that kid’s face just scream “dilemmanated”, or what?
2000: No entry.
Vote for Gracie, pleeeeease! ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ From Elayne: Can anyone recommend a WordPress expert who won’t charge thousands of dollars? My site’s seriously outdated (my fault entirely) and appears to have been compromised and … Continue reading “9/26/11 – Monday”
Can anyone recommend a WordPress expert who won’t charge thousands of dollars? My site’s seriously outdated (my fault entirely) and appears to have been compromised and I would deeply appreciate any help in getting it sorted, where by “help” I mean “someone who’ll say, ‘I’ll handle all this, you just give me some money and appreciation at the end’ because I’m utterly clueless.”
The only place I could think to recommend would be Make My Blog Pretty. I haven’t used them myself (because CLEARLY I’m a super-awesome blog designer myself ::coughcoughHAHAHAHcoughcough:: ), but I’ve read enough blogs who recommend them that the name has stuck in my head.
Y’all have any other suggestions? Please share!
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Fred had Friday off (he’d worked enough hours the week before to earn the day off), and we talked about going up to Nashville to visit the big flea market up there – my idea – but I decided that it wasn’t going to be worth the drive, because when it really comes down to it, (1) we don’t need any more shit in this house, and (2) flea markets tend to be the same old shit, no matter where they are. Would it have been fun to to visit and people watch and see what there was? Maybe. But I didn’t want to make the drive to get there, spend an hour walking through, and then have to drive all the way home.
We tossed around ideas for things we could do (a day trip to Gatlinburg, you might be amazed to hear, was not something I could interest Fred in. What? It’s only a five hour trip each way!), and finally Fred suggested that we check out the Unclaimed Baggage store in Scottsboro. I’ve been there twice – once with my parents and the spud, once with Nance and Rick – and found it pretty interesting, and got some good buys.
So early Friday morning, we headed out. It took us a little over an hour to get there, but Fred took us on an alternate route down some country roads with pretty scenery, so I had no complaint.
Unfortunately, in the years since the last time I visited Unclaimed Baggage, they’ve apparently wised up to the fact that they had really good, really low prices, and have upped the prices and gone a little more commercial looking. The electronics were not priced low enough, in my opinion, and the clothes were way too expensive. The books were, well, a little pricier than I would have liked, but I did end up with two hardbacks in spite of myself. In short, we drove over an hour to get there, spent $15 on books (Fred bought one, too), and drove over an hour to get home.
We really need to take up hiking or something, I guess, something to do that will get us out of the house on nice days so we’re not sitting at home 24/7 and slowly going crazy.
(I should add that it doesn’t really bother me to sit at home all the time, I manage to keep myself busy, but by the end of a three-day weekend without going anywhere, Fred is on the verge of losing his MIND.)
So we were on our way through Madison, which is on the way from here to Scottsboro, and I realized that the land where they’ve been promising a Walmart for at least the past five years was completely cleared. There’s been a sign up on that property (which was about 85% forested) since we bought the house in 2006, and I’m pretty sure that originally it said that Walmart was coming in 2010, and then the date kept getting pushed back.
Apparently I hadn’t noticed last time I went up the road that they’d started clearing the land in preparation for actually building the Walmart, which is now slated (I think) for Spring of 2012. I suspect they finally got moving on building the Walmart because a Target is in the process of going up just down the road, and it’s slated to open on March 11th.
(So instead of having to drive 30 minutes to Huntsville to go to Target, I’ll only have to go 20 minutes to go to the Madison Target!)
(Also, it’s rumored that one of the stores going in around the Target is a HomeGoods store, which I’ve heard about but never been to, so that’s a potential “Woohoo.”)
ANYWAY.
Right next to the Walmart site is a strip club, Jimmy’s. I love to drive by Jimmy’s because there’s a billboard next to Jimmy’s, and of course some church or another is always advertising their Sunday services or whatever in hopes of guilting the god-fearing men who might potentially be about to have a weak moment. I can only imagine how much money Walmart has offered Jimmy’s to vacate the premises, but it appears that Jimmy’s is owned by someone who has no intention of moving.
I kind of look forward to seeing Walmart and Jimmy’s existing side by side, is that wrong?
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Saturday morning, I got up and went out to work in the garden. I pulled up four or five tomato plants that were on their way out, and tossed them on the compost heap. I picked tomatoes from the remaining plants and ended up with just a handful worth keeping, but a bucket’s worth for the chickens and pigs. Honestly, the only reason I haven’t pulled all the tomato plants up is because the chickens love nothing so much as tomatoes, ripe or not, and they especially like the wormy ones, so it’s worth going out there and pulling tomatoes for them a couple of times a week.
The okra plants are still producing, but very slowly. They’re on the way out too, I suppose.
I got half a bucket full of bell peppers, which I sliced and put in the dehydrator. I don’t like peppers – bell or otherwise – but Fred does, so he’ll have plenty ’til next year.
Fred picked the muscadine vines clean. We ended up with exactly a gallon of them, so I made a batch of muscadine jelly. I still find it amusing, how much jam and jelly I make, given that we hardly ever eat the stuff.
Sunday I did laundry, cleaned the bathrooms, and just kind of puttered around. I made a batch of Green Tomato Chili for Fred to divide up into single serving containers and stick in the freezer to take to work as lunches. Since I was making it just for him, I added several bell peppers to the recipe, and then he went out and picked a couple of Ghost peppers for me to add as well. When the chili was done, he tasted it and said he couldn’t even taste the heat of the Ghost peppers.
(Which made me roll my eyes, because I’m SURE anyone with NORMAL taste buds would have detected them just fine!)
All in all, a really good, productive weekend here at Crooked Acres!
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Update on Coriander and Ciara! No pictures, but one of the Saturday adoption counselors reports:
The girls are doing great. The mother & sister (and 2 year old nephew) of their new mom came by Petsmart today. The extended family thinks the girls are the greatest cats in the world. They are getting along with the Lab and Coriander runs to the door with the dog when their humans get home. Coriander likes to play soccer with her ball and the girls take up the whole sofa
I can absolutely see Cori racing to the door with the dog when their humans get home. How CUTE is that?!
I love hearing that my girls are happy. And just so y’all remember what they look like, here’s one of my favorite pictures of Cori:
And I just love this one of Ciara:
I love SO MUCH that those two went to their forever home together. I love that Ciara was Maggie’s only girl, she had ALL those brothers, but she ended up with a forever sister anyway!
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In the last few days, when we go into the guest bedroom to hang out with Charlie and Patty, they do their level best to get out the door. This is normal kitten behavior, of course, but new behavior for these two. They’re easy enough to catch – or stop from escaping the room – but I had stuff in my hands Saturday evening and before I could stop him, Charlie went marching out the door and down the hall to sniff wildly around the living room before Fred scooped him up and returned him to his sister.
For a very short period of time yesterday, Fred took first Patty and then Charlie up to see how they’d react to the Peppers Gang. Both kittens were interested but intimidated by the bigger kittens, and after a little while Charlie went into the closet and hid behind the door. Patty hid, too, and watched them play. The big kittens hissed and growled at the little ones and then ignored them.
After that, Charlie and Patty didn’t try to get out of the guest bedroom. I guess now that they know those BIG SCARY KITTENS are out there somewhere, the guest bedroom isn’t so bad!
Pretty Patty Peppers.
Charlie Peppers, the little poser.
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When the feather teaser comes out, Everett gets…
Oh, what’s the word…
..it’s on the tip of my tongue…
…it’ll come to me…
“dramatic” isn’t it…
“grabby” doesn’t quite cover it…
..what’s the word?…
FLAILY. That’s the word. He totally gets all flaily, with his claws flying.
What? Flaily IS SO a word!
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“Hey, you little whippersnappers! Get off my lawn!”
Old man Spanky keeps on rollin’. He just turned 15 on the 15th. Looks good for an old guy, doesn’t he?
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Previously
2010: No entry.
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry. 2007: So am I getting this right – if you have nothing of substance to mock about a woman, you talk about her huge v@gina? Is that how that works? 2006: Sugarbutt lolled seductively on the counter, giving me his best “Hey Momma, what you got there for the Sugarman?” eyes. 2005: I’m sure I’ll get used to it, though, the way I got used to the neighborhood kids always running across our yard and always setting up shop in our driveway.
2004: No entry. 2003: Immediately, screaming like a little girl, Fred levitated across the room to the fireplace, where he began dancing a jig, slapping at his legs, and screaming intermittently. 2002: But it’s still tempting. 2001: J’accuse.
2000: No entry.
Did ya vote for Gracie over at the Greenies competition, didya, didya, huh? (Those of you in Canada and other countries who can’t vote, you are excused. I appreciate your trying, though!) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ … Continue reading “9/23/11 – Friday”
(Those of you in Canada and other countries who can’t vote, you are excused. I appreciate your trying, though!)
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We have a property line asshole next door. We put in a new hedge at the front of our property and she came over claiming it was in her yard.
After digging out the surveyors papers she agreed we were right. And yes, she agreed, their side fence was TWO FEET in our property. “But that is ok” she decided and went sheepishly into the house.
Ohhhh, Amy, I would make a HUUUUUUGE stink about her being two feet onto your property. This could happen to you!:
My Grandparents lost about an acre of land because his neighbor overfenced into their property (they had something close to 80 acres if I remember right so an acre was sort of a drop in the bucket). When my grandfather went to talk to them about it, the neighbors were all “But we put it in! And it was expensive! And Wah cakes!” so my grandpa was all neighborly with the “I guess it’s alright”. Then, when my grandfather wanted that land back some time later, the neighbors put up a fight and won because they had had it fenced in for so long it somehow became theirs. It pays to be “those” neighbors sometimes.
I’m sure someone out there can give us the specifics, but in many (if not all!) states, if you allow your neighbor use of your land for a certain amount of time, they eventually get to claim it as their own. Which is a special form of assholery, if you ask me.
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Some other friends put a fence only between themselves and their next-door neighbor, leaving three sides fenceless. The neighbor got sort of pissy about that, I’m told.
Fred mentioned the idea of putting up a fence (“How high do they make privacy fences?” he asked me last night.) just on that side of the house. Because, hey, we don’t really have problems on the other side of us, since there’s a church there AND a ditch that pretty clearly marks the property line.
Maybe we need a ditch along the property line on that side, too!
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“99.999% of the time, the household goods sold at flea markets are hot.”
Not true! There is a cottage industry of extreme couponing with the goal of selling the stuff at flea markets.
Wait. Are you trying to tell me that those extreme couponers don’t all hoard their stuff in the basement or the garage or the extra bedroom?! I had never considered that they might sell that stuff at flea markets, but it makes sense now that I think about it.
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When you and Fred bought the house, didn’t it have a pond in the back but it really didn’t have water in it? If I recall, didn’t you have it filled in with dirt? Maybe I’m mistaken…
I can’t for the life of me find it, but I have a drawn property map somewhere, I’ll see if I can’t find it or slap one together in the next week. In short no, you aren’t mistaken, we did have a small pond that was located in the area between the back of the back yard and the beginning of the back forty. It dried up because we had a dry summer, and we didn’t like where it was located, so we had it filled in.
This is what it looked like during the brief period of time when it was full:
And here, the summer before, with dead catfish floating on the surface and the spud on the other end:
The new pond is going to be located at the back of the back forty and will be roughly four times as big as the pond we had filled in. The guy was supposed to start digging the pond on Monday but OF COURSE Mother Nature is a WHORE and it rained on Monday and Tuesday, so we’re not sure when he’ll be able to start digging. Soon, I hope.
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RE: the Pond – are you going to put a plastic liner in the bottom and put large stones around it, or is it just going to be a hole in the ground. Sounds like you are going to have fishys for the duckys – so are you going to have a pump thing heater thing – or go all naturale, like a normal creek/pond.
I don’t think we could afford enough plastic to put a liner in the pond we’re having dug, so I guess it’s going to just be a hole in the ground. It’ll be like a normal creek/pond. I don’t see putting a heater in the pond, but we are talking about a solar-powered aerator. We’re talking about planting a couple of trees near the pond, and I’d like to have a bench so we could sit back there and watch the ducks paddle about.
(Fred’s talking about putting his kayak in the pond. I’m not sure if he’s kidding about that or not…)
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A little while ago you were talking about grey versus silver tabbies. I got all confused. Now I thought my boy was a grey tabby and the vet tells me he’s blue! He’s beautiful but what’s the difference grey/silver/blue??
Oldcat – my go-to expert when it comes to this sort of thing – had this to contribute last week:
Grey versus Silver tabbies –
The difference depends on what you mean by a grey tabby. I have heard of ‘grey tabby’ used as a contrast to ‘brown’, and for tabbies where the stripes are grey. Brown tabbys have a high degree of rufousing, so the hairs between the stripes can show a distinct orange or brown color. Tabbies with low levels will be a pale grey.
If a tabby has the dilute gene, the stripes themselves will be blue grey. Shiela looks like this might be the case with her – are her paw pads purplish or black? There is also some variation of how dark regular non dilute cats are, so it could be that as well.
True silvers have a different gene, the Inhibitor gene, that keeps any pigment from showing. Thus the hair near the skin will be pure white. Chinchilla Persians have this and a wideband gene that makes the pigmented part of the hair restricted to the tip. The black tip over white is supposed to make it look silvery. But if you look on these cats the paw pads and gums show that under it all these cats are black.
So in jargon terms I would call Shiela a blue tabby with low rufousing. The Inhibitor gene would make her background much whiter
Oldcat, can you weigh in on what exactly constitutes a “blue” cat?
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Several people sent me these videos, and they cracked me UP!
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as to fostering being hard.. it really depends on what you mean by hard.. The actual physical work of doing it really isn’t. Even when you have very sick kittens, it’s more hanging out and cuddling them and a few moments of medicating. EMOTIONALLY it can take it’s toll. Most of us have to remember that we are doing good even when the outcome is not what we want. Kittens die. Unless you take only the healthiest and older kittens you are most likely going to have to deal with a kitten passing on your watch. Or kittens can become really sick and you nurse them back to health and they become really loving devoted kittens and your heart breaks when you have to give them back. out of the hundreds of kittens I’ve fostered, the sick ones are still near and dear to my heart (and so are the ones I have lost). There are a bunch of kittens I no longer remember with out the help of my blog, but there are some that will always pop up in my mind from time to time and will live in my heart forever. You do loose little bits of your soul every time you send those special kittens back, but they are that much stronger and better for having taken it with them.
I should add here that often times the most difficult thing about fostering is the sheer frustration. You’ve got kittens, they’re doing fine, they’re healthy, they’ve been dewormed, they’re having perfect poops and then BAM! for no reason you can determine, they have diarrhea and they’re tromping through it and tracking it all over the place and you’ve changed absolutely nothing about their diet or anything at all. So you start sprinkling Slippery Elm on their food and you take fecal samples to the vet to be tested, and you try this and that and the other, and sometimes it just drags on FOR NO REASON, and other times it just clears up all of a sudden and you don’t know why. So frustrating!
“I just spent at least two minutes talking to a cat who was sitting under my desk, up against my foot. I talked to it, petted it with the foot it wasn’t laying up against, and then finally peeked under the desk to see just which cat it was.
It was a slipper. No wonder it wouldn’t purr.”
And just recently, I kicked a slipper and then apologized to it. Stupid slippers.
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surely that’s not a ‘glare’ look? I thought it was more…well…blonde. Like trying to work out the square root of…ah… something square-rooty. 🙂
“Math is harrrrrrrrd!”
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A coworker sent me this; I wanted to make sure you’d seen it. My favorite bit is the kitten with the fish vending machine.
SO CUTE!
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1) How is The Poo? I can’t remember seeing a recent picture of Miz Poo; is she doing ok?
She is doing just fine, and I’ll post some pictures of her at the end of the entry. I tend not to get so many pictures of her because she’s always right on top of me, which makes it kind of difficult to get a good picture. She’s 12 years old now and slowing down, but NOTHING stops her from getting up on the bed with me every night. Also, nothing stops her from approaching anyone who walks into the house – whether she’s ever seen them before or not – and demanding attention.
4) Regarding the excellent cat relationship chart you made some time ago:
someday, may we have an updated version, now that you’ve added to the herd? That chart was a HUGE eye-opener for me. I admit, I had visions of your cats sleeping together in big fuzzy piles, much like tiny kittens will clump together when snoozing. Clearly, I was WRONG. Now, in my mind’s-eye, I see it more like each cat needing its own personal space bubble, changing in size depending on who is nearby. I’ve been thinking about this a lot since Bolitar came back. I find it very interesting that he’s been accepted back into the herd with little fuss, yet Joe Bob, whose return story is almost the same(?) was NOT welcomed back as smoothly. (Somewhere, at some fancy university, there’s someone just waiting to write some sort of paper on cat herd behavior — what a gold mine of information you may have! 🙂 )
I will do my best to get that chart updated soon with Alice and Buster and Corbie added – I made that chart in April of last year. A lot has changed since then, hasn’t it?
I would love it if the cats would pile up like kittens, but they don’t very often. If there are cats snuggled up together, Tommy is almost always involved. There’s something about him that most of the other cats really like – maybe his easygoing nature, maybe his willingness to groom whatever cat is in tongue’s reach.
I am betting that most of the reason Buster was accepted back relatively easily as opposed to the response that Joe Bob got is because Buster was here for months before he left, and he pretty much grew up here. I mean, he was still a kitten when he left, but he was, oh, seven or eight months old, and the other cats had had a chance to really get to know him as he grew up and make him part of the herd. Joe Bob was only with us as a foster for about six weeks before he left, and he was already an adult when he came to us. He was accepted by Sugarbutt, Tommy, and Mister Boogers before he left, though, which is why we were so surprised when he came back and none of them wanted anything to do with him.
One reason I think Joe Bob and most of the other cats don’t get along is because Joe Bob is touchy; I originally thought it was just the other cats being jerks, but I’m thinking that’s not necessarily so. If the other cats are looking at him, thinking about looking at him, or thinking passing thoughts about him, he KNOWS, and he doesn’t LIKE IT, and he gets all growly and hissy toward them. There are times – three and a half years after we brought him home for good – when I’ll see him rub heads with some of the other cats (disclaimer: it’s almost always Kara or Jake, and when it does happen, it’s when they’re all milling around waiting for me to give them food), but for the most part if every other cat on the face of the earth disappeared, Joe Bob would be A-OK with that. He’s a people lover, not a cat lover.
Wow. I certainly can go on about our cats, can’t I? 🙂
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Have you seen the purrfect house for cats? Several people sent me the link, and I have to agree – that is the PERFECT house for us!
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I don’t know why but for some reason I pictured George and Gracie as being regal all the time.
Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! No, George and Gracie are total goofballs. They play and they prance and they roll around on their backs like goofy dorks all the time; they can fake it pretty well, but mostly they are never ever regal.
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I recently acquired a new kitten that had shown up at a coworker’s home,who checked out healthy and I think he’s about.. 6-7 months not really sure, and did the required transitioning phase for him and my other two girls, Ember whom I’ve had all her life, and Miss that I’ve gotten just a little over a year ago. He leaves Ember alone for the most part, but just continues to antagonize Miss all the time. I can’t tell if they’re fighting, or rough housing half the time. She’s not happy with him when he does it but when he’s behaving she has no problem with him. He’s going to be fixed this Friday and was wondering if that would help bring his aggression level down, and I’m wondering if this is also because he’s still a kitten just in his ‘teenager’ stage and they’re both fully grown cats. Both the girls are Fixed so I’m not quite sure what it is about Miss that has him fixating on her.
I’m posting this in case anyone out there has any suggestions or thoughts on the situation, but it’s my opinion that they’ll work things out. If she seems to be handling things okay rather than being scared of him, then I think it’ll eventually calm down. She’s closest in age to the new guy, correct? He may think/ know that Miss is more likely to react to and play-fight with him, so he concentrates his energies toward her rather than Ember. He’s still pretty young and he has all that energy of a kitten, but I would bet that being neutered will help calm him down a little.
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Where is the like button?! 😀
At the top and bottom of each entry, of course!
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That wicker cat bed thing is so.cool. Where did you find that?
A friend gave it to me about a year ago (her cat wouldn’t use it). Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find it anywhere online – she said she thought she got it at Costco several years ago.
But then GD and Jenna and Sissy pointed out that Petsmart has similar wicker cat cave/ beds, so I went and looked on their web site. I didn’t find anything on the web page, and I had already gone to Petsmart and come home, so it was too late to look at the store myself, but I would recommend checking there.
The tea towel, alas, appears to be sold out as well.
Um. There’s no room at the inn? Those are just horrifyingly wonderful (or wonderfully horrifying, take your pick!)
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You know, if you’re putting in a pond, you could probably farm your own crawfish 🙂
I originally misread this as “catfish” and I was going to say that we will most likely have catfish in that pond. But CRAWFISH! Hmm, I am going to have to think about that, because that certainly sounds like it’s right up my alley.
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Those tiny chicks, SO adorable. I just want to pick up one and pet it. Do you ever do that? Or would it put Momma Hen off the babies?
Fred occasionally picks them up and we pet them, but they get kind of freaked out so we don’t do it often. There’s less of a chance of the Momma Hens refusing to take care of their babies and more of a chance that the Momma Hens will attempt to peck our eyes out. They do NOT like it when you mess with their babies.
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Did your cats actually notice that the electric fence was out?
They didn’t – but it was only out for less than a day, because we went up to Lowe’s the next day and bought a new transformer to replace the one that fried. Fred noticed that one of the cats – Tommy, I think – was closer to the fence than he usually gets, but no one climbed the fence. I’m sure that if it had gone on for longer than a day, someone would have figured it out, and then there would have been trouble!
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Is wee but powerful Patty getting more relaxed around you and Fred?
She is more relaxed than she was, but whereas her brother runs toward us when we walk into the room, Patty runs and hides under a corner of the bed. She comes out pretty quickly, but it’s still her first instinct to hide. I’m hoping that that will go away eventually. She comes to be petted, but I have yet to hear her meow or trill or make any noise other than a purr.
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How about a question?
A question about cat farting that is?
We recently re-entered the world of cat ownership, and this brother and sister team passes some wickedly awful gas. The male in particular lets ones go (silently) that have the sulphur/egg smell.
They were just turning a year old when we got them, and they had been in foster care with something like 18 other cats. (Hmmm, familiar?) The woman taking care of them admitted she could no longer afford to feed them a very high quality food, but I think that what we’re feeding them is decent.
I read online that cats fart and the protein in their food makes it stink, but I also see people that write that you should have a cat with bad gas checked out.
WDRT? (What does Robyn think?)
I think that cat farts are nasty, is what I think. And they ALWAYS do it when you’re least expecting it, don’t they? The little monsters!
Okay, seriously, I think that it’s probably one of three things (or maybe a couple of three things – or heck, even all three of three things!)
1. How recently did you get them? Because if they were switched from a cheaper food to a more quality food, it could take their systems some time (even a few months) to adjust.
2. Have they been dewormed or checked for worms/ parasites? I know that Giardia and Coccidia can cause the most awful gas sometimes – but if their litter box leavings are in decent shape, it probably isn’t either of those. (I know that it’s possible for Giardia/ Coccidia to exist outside of diarrhea, but I’ve never witnessed that myself.)
3. They’ll grow out of it. I offer as an example of this one Loony Jake. When young, he was a gassy, gassy boy. And he was fond of walking by, farting at you, and then slinking off. You’d be minding your own business and then just about fall over from the stink. Gah. SO NASTY.
If the gas gets worse (if that’s POSSIBLE) or there’s diarrhea present or they’re acting anything other than completely healthy and energetic, I’d get them to the vet.
I know readers out there have opinions on this topic. Y’all chime in!
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You can’t really see it, but she was smacking at his tail.
She sure does get the upper hand easily. I’m starting to think he’s letting her win.
::chomp::
He looks like he’s not quite sure what happened.
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“THIS TIME I’m going to get it! For real!”
“Come on… come on…”
::SIGH::
“Lady, I’m starting to think you’re driving me crazy on purpose.”
“Now pet me.”
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THE BOOKWORM BRUDDERS
(Buster and Corbie)
WOULD LIKE TO REMIND YOU
THAT THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL.
Buster, atop the pantry in the kitchen (nice of him to match his mustache to the color of the pantry, no?).
Keeping an eye on Stinkerbelle.
Corbie chills out in the back yard.
“WHO left this pop-up hamper here?” Detective Corbie’s on the case!
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Miz Poo, in the cat bed next to my computer (that’s where she usually is during the day).
Look o’ love.
Still keeping an eye on me.
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Previously 2010: Until then, I’m going to try to achieve a state of Sugarbutt-type zen. 2009: Things that are annoying the SHIT out of me lately. 2008: I’m sure SOMETHING will get peed on while she’s here, anyway.
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry. 2005: UGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH. 2004: Questions and answers. 2003: I feel like Eudora’s a creepy old lady hovering over my shoulder, reading my email, and threatening to tell my mommy on me. 2002: Anything more complicated than that, and I think you’ll have to look elsewhere.
2001: No entry.
2000: No entry.
Vote for Gracie! Please? ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Sights from around Crooked Acres. Last week, it stormed. A bolt of lightning hit close enough to the house to fry the underground fence around the back yard … Continue reading “9/22/11 – Crooked Acres Thursday”
Last week, it stormed. A bolt of lightning hit close enough to the house to fry the underground fence around the back yard (the little box inside the house that runs the fence, I mean to say – the wire itself was fine). Fred didn’t realize ’til the weekend that it also spot-welded the hook that holds the gate to the chickens’ maternity yard closed.
Happy pups.
The ducks are getting bigger every day.
They always stick together.
“Guys, come back over here! Bob found a bug!”
They seem to prefer this smaller container over the kids’ pool. I hope they like their pond, whenever the guy gets it dug.
“Who, me? Slacking under the chicken coop? Why, no. I’d never!”
“Yes he would!”
Side eyes.
Scratching an itch.
“Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod!”
“Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod!”
“Ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod!”
“::puff::puff::puff::gasp::pant:: Someone said there were COOKIES over here?!”
“I would totally get out of this wallow if you gave me a cookie. ::sideeyes::”
Mama hen and her babies.
These are the chicks who were born last week. We had another six hatch yesterday. And the Silkie is sitting on seven eggs. ::sigh::
Almost as much as tomatoes, chickens love watermelon.
That white one there in the middle is all “MINE, ALL MINE.”
“Hey! Y’all get away from my watermelon!”
This gangly teenage rooster grabbed a chunk and ran off with it so he could eat in peace. That’s the smart move!
I just put this poster up in the foster room. I think it’s really neat – I saw one in a vet’s office, and had to get one for myself. I’d kind of like to get a feline internal organs chart to go along with it, but I’m not having any luck finding one.
The walls are getting crowded in there. Over the door to the closet is Fat Cat Capsizing. To the left of that is the Guide to House Cat Coat Color and Patterns, and to the left of that is the picture Katherine gave me several months ago, which I like more every time I look at it.
On the other side, the skeletal poster, a “Keep Cats and Kitty On” print, and a shelf that holds the phone and laser toy. Oh, and though you can’t see it, a gorgeous cross-stitched kitten picture my grandmother cross-stitched for my daughter and which I borrowed for the foster room (she’ll get it back some day!)
I try, at least one dinner a week, to serve nothing but food we grew at Crooked Acres. Sunday, we had pork chops, okra, and butternut squash fries.
And then Monday, pork chops (left over from the night before), roasted acorn squash (the last of the THREE we ended up getting), and tomatoes and mozzarella.
But don’t be too impressed – Tuesday and Wednesday, we had shrimp that we definitely did NOT grow here (but it was oh so good!)
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One minute he’s sitting there minding his own business…
And the next!
He’s getting his butt kicked!
By his very own little sister!
Soundly kicked!
I guess she’s not frail and fragile any more, to say the least!
And then they nap.
I’m truly not quite sure how she gets up there. I’m assuming she jumps up? Climbs up? Who knows. Maybe she’s Super Patty and she leaps up there in a single bound!
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Never! Give! Up!
“Not sure how I got up here, and not sure how I’m gonna get down.”
I love Everett’s orange eyes.
Sally Peppers is not impressed.
Goofy Lucy Peppers.
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Newt, trying to blend in with the leaves.
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Previously 2010: The many moods of Marty. 2009: That was one big fucking dose of Benadryl and I was high as a kite. 2008: “Shit!” he exclaimed. “We forgot to check Nick for toots!”
2007: No entry. 2006: If I were manic-depressive (wait. Do they call it bipolar now? I haven’t kept up on my psychiatrically politically correct terms lately), I think I would have been considered to be in a manic state yesterday. 2005: Never-ending. 2004: If you had any idea how much time I spent backspacing and retyping words when I write my entries, you’d burst into tears of sympathy. 2003: Who the fuck are Nikki and Paris Hilton, and why would I give a good goddamn what they’re wearing or doing or driving or fucking?
2002: No entry. 2001: You know you’re getting old when you have to ask a 12 year-old girl who’s on the TV.
2000: No entry.
Did you vote for Gracie today over at the Greenies competition? Thank you so much, everyone who has voted for Gracie, she appreciates it a lot! (Okay, she doesn’t care. But I appreciate it. Thank you!) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ … Continue reading “9/21/11”
Thank you so much, everyone who has voted for Gracie, she appreciates it a lot! (Okay, she doesn’t care. But I appreciate it. Thank you!)
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Chelsea asked:
So I have a question. My boyfriend and I rescued a kitten from outside about two months ago. We’ve had him checked and all that stuff. He’s about 5 months old. He’s a great cat except for one thing. Whenever we eat food, he sits and meows insistently. He’ll crawl around trying to get on the table and chairs and stuff to get our food. We feed him lots, both wet and dry food. It doesn’t matter what we eat- cereal, chicken, pasta, a sandwich, a salad- he’ll sit there and meow like he’s never eaten.
How do we get him to stop meowing? Aside from locking him out of the room when we’re eating, we can;t think of anything. It’s annoying. And we worry about people who come over and hear his meow and feed him. We don’t want them to encourage him. We never feed him from our plates. He’s done this since we got him.
My response was:
Chelsea, I’d suggest keeping a can of compressed air or a spray bottle of water at the table with you while you eat, and the instant he starts howling, shoot it at him. Be consistent, don’t put up with the howling (I know, it’s hard to be mean to them when they’re so darn cute) and eventually if you’re consistent, he’ll get the message.
And then smack anyone who feeds him from their plates!
But then I thought that maybe y’all would have other suggestions, so if you do feel free to share!
I don’t put up with any of the cats howling for food when we’re eating. Occasionally, if we’re having something that smells really good to him, Spanky will sit next to me and rest his cold, cold nose against my leg in hopes that I’ll offer him my plate when I’m done. I put up with that because he’s the old man of the house and age has its privileges, but any other cat who harasses me gets a squirt from the can of compressed air immediately. Do I come howl at them when they’re bellied up to THEIR food? I do not. I expect the same consideration from them.
(If I must be honest, if I DID howl at them when they were eating, they’d probably just move over so I could eat out of the bowl. But that’s beside the point!)
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Remember Greg Brady? He was adopted by a family who loves him to death – his new name is Riley – and here’s how he looks these days:
To all of you at Challenger’s House…a big Thank You! We adore our Challenger’s House kitties (Riley aka. Greg Brady and Cheeto). J We adopted them at separate times, but they get along wonderfully.
I love seeing my fosters go to such great homes!
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Cavorting Time
(with George and Gracie)
Juuuuust hangin’ out. Watching chickens.
Chillin’. And then, suddenly…
LET! THE CAVORTING! BEGIN!
Oh, how Gracie loves to grab George’s tail because it drives him NUTS.
“You come over here, I bite you face.”
::chomp::
Playing dead. But Gracie’s not fooled.
George considers his next move.
“Your breath stinks.”
“Well, your mama dresses you funny.”
“Dude, seriously. Your breath.”
“It’s knocking me out.”
“It kills me like this.”
“You better run, ’cause I’m coming to kick your butt!”
“Long as you don’t breathe on me!”
Crazy pups.
I love it when they run around like wild things.
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Jake and Alice, kinda snuggling. What I think happened is that Alice was in the bed, asleep, when Jake climbed in with her.
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Previously 2010: BUT IT WILL BE MADE WITH LURRRRRVE. 2009: If it had been an orb weaver, I’d be writing this from the Great Beyond, having died due to a heart attack brought on by the horror of having something the size of my head crawling down my face.
2008: No entry. 2007: I think I need more sleep. 2006: Photographic proof that I met a (Not So)Scary Internet Person and lived to tell the tale! 2005: I mean, it’s not bad enough the man has road rage, he’s got to have fucking walking-through-the-house rage too? 2004: “No, this is real time!” Fred sighed.
2003: No entry.
2002: No entry. 2001: Written by hand.
2000: No entry.
