To demonstrate my earlier statement about my sister shopping in unusual stores, I present her latest gift to me: the Squash(ed) Cat.
Yes, that is an orange acorn squash with cast iron cat appendages stuck in it. (I supplied the squash.)
Cool, huh?
It looks great next to Judi's felt bowl.
It must be fall.
see more crazy cat pics
OK, I said it wouldn't become a travelogue, but the Seattle Public Library is pretty cool. I'll let the shots speak for themselves.
The library's red corridor level (one of the Nine Circles Of Hell according to Dante)
Here are the escalators:
That's Joyce above me, our new library friend. We had all kinds of fun taking each other's photos throughout the place, running down the up escalator, passing off cameras, all that crazy tourist wackiness. Really, it was fun. She was visiting from SF - we liked her. Hi, Joyce! if she's reading this.
Obligatory artsy architecture shot:
We hit the Pike Place market and bought weird stuff, spent way too much time and money in So Much Yarn in Belltown (really fun staff and knitted samples for sale for $20!), spent the longest hour in my life behind the wheel in Friday afternoon rush hour in the middle of downtown (fun!) the reason for which I can't divulge or my sister will kill me, and picnicked in the ballroom hotel room with wine, mozzarella, tomatoes and basil.
Now we're listening to the Mariners/Yankees - 3-nothing Seattle, no hitter, YES! Susan's irritated. I love it.
Smackdown action:
My big-beautiful-Bob and the killer princess Muffin are not pleased with the presence of the little squirt Oreo in the house.
Bob stomps around growling deep in his throat and avoids the house except to eat and get a lil lovin' from the mistress (me). Muffin prefers the cold silent mean-girl stare. All the while, little happy-go-lucky Oreo continues to play, jump, and pounce, pretty much ignoring the cranky old folk.
Except when we have:
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Every so often, the Bob'a'Muff team delivers a spanking to the little guy, who, like a good little kitten, rolls over and assumes the submissive "I'm just a tiny little baby" position. They raise their paws and give him a quick smack-smack-smack, then run away.
It seems to be a standard ritual and they all play their part. He doesn't seem very afraid, and someday I'm sure he'll smack them back. (That is, if we keep him, of course, which we're clearly not thinking of doing.)
It's not easy to take one-handed shots of squirmy kittens in low light.
Baby kitty! How can you resist one?
He just likes to sleep upside down on the surface of his tank.
Actually, it's the dreaded swim bladder disease. It happens because they've been bred to be "fancy": i.e. egg-shaped, which screws with their air bladders.
It's hard to get a good shot of him when he's upright as he has to swim constantly or he'll flip over and float to the top.
Is he suffering? Happy? Should we put him out of his misery? Maybe he's okay with his rotated view of the world. Several other fish we've had have lived for as long as a year like this. It's very distressing to look at, but when he's right-side up, he seems happy, cruising around looking for food as usual.
Don't buy fancy goldfish - it only leads to heartache.
*With a tip 'o' the blogging hat to Cathi D. (Yes, I have a thing for her. And her chickens).
Since y'all are going to say it anyway, let's get it over with, shall we? All together now: "That Melissa - she crazy!" Okay, now you don't have to say it again in the comments, do you?
I turned in the baked kittens for some fresh ones right out of the oven. When I took the former ferals back to the shelter they (the shelter) begged me to take two more, 24 hours old. They were being separated from their mom who was truly a wild cat, so they could be socialized, vaccinated, wormed, spayed and everything else they do to make them acceptable, adoptable pets. How hard could it be? They don't even move yet! Right. Just like human babies, they have to be fed every 4 hours AROUND THE CLOCK.
Not being completely out of my mind (no, really), I agreed to take them on for 4 days until another foster home opens up. Otherwise, it's an 8-week commitment as a mom cat. They are awful cute, though...
More to come.
Here in the high desert, water is scarce (though you wouldn't know it to look at our green green golf courses (34 at last count) or our acres of suburban lawn). Water's on my mind as I tackle the projects of summer: cleaning gutters, cleaning and refilling the hot tub, setting up the vegetable garden, installing more drip irrigation, and the exciting one right now: building a water feature. (I love the term "water feature" - it's such realtor/landscaper talk.)
My lot is blessed with a towering natural rock outcropping, unusual for our suburban neighborhood. I've always dreamed about a waterfall and pool in these rocks, and this summer I have the time and motivation to build it.
What I have in mind is more of a seeping spring down the rock, like you see on the sides of the road over the passes here. So I'm digging out the sandpit I built six years ago for Henry and reclaiming it for a lovely little trickling "feature." .html?/photos/uncategorized/2008/07/21/2690670863_79c5c085a4_m.jpg "2690670863_79c5c085a4_m")
It's hard, messy, dirty work, and I've never been known for my digging skills. It will either be a simple, enjoyable project or one of those projects from hell where you spend loads of time and money and then hire somebody to fix it all.
I've been doing a lot of internet research and have compiled my shopping list: a pump (submersible, magnetic, direct drive? What size?), PVC hosing, clamps, skimmers, filters, liners, etc. Tomorrow I'm going to brave the landscaping supply store and allow the men there to guide me.
That's how I've done a lot of intimidating efforts by myself: renovating a sailboat; becoming a scuba instructor; starting my consulting business; adopting a baby, landscaping my lot and so on. By researching and asking a lot of questions of helpful neighbors, professionals, and total strangers. I appreciated Amber's comment about learning how to do things alone - I've been managing most of my adult life, and it's a continual source of personal accomplishment and confidence. As my sister says: "Girls can do anything!"
What projects have you tackled alone and mastered? What have you gotten out of it?
Today's harvest: arugula, parsley and sweetpea blossoms. Sunflowers, shallots and peas are progressing nicely as well.
It has been so beautiful here all week - not too hot, perfect temp. Friends have been dropping by for wine and meals, and the knitting group met here on the deck for some fresh air knitting. My X is out of town so I get some peace. And I'm not working, but getting paid. What could be better? If the kittens would stop crying so piteously, that's what.
You can teach an old dog new tricks, as long as you have liver snaps.
Muffin and Bob show their true feelings when they're alone. Otherwise, they ignore each other or fight.
I have a bunch of old quilts and coverlets handed down (or passed off) by my mom, made by a great-great aunt. She's also had other ones made for me and I've collected some myself over the years. I've kept them carefully tucked away in an armoire with the thought that someday I'd have a house big enough to use them and display them.
I was moving things around last week and realized I could really use that armoire. I pulled out the quilts and had an epiphany. "Someday" is never coming. It wasn't a sad or depressing thought. It was the realization that this IS my life - I can't keep waiting for it to start.
So I washed the quilts and put the less-fragile ones out on beds. I'm sending one of them off to a sister who likes pink, and will store the others to pass down to Henry's family. There's one that is in overall bad shape that I'm hoping to give to a quilter who can use the old squares. It's tied, not quilted, so they're easy to disassemble. It's the blue and red one on the bottom in the photo.
Memorial Day afternoon a friend and I went out to lunch at a newish well-reviewed cafe in town. It's a breakfast/lunch place with the trappings of a fancy-casual restaurant: wines on a rack, water in a carafe, spendy prices. It was about half full, but it became apparent that they were at the end of a busy 3-day weekend. The wait staff were a bit disorganized, but we're used to that in Bend. The food and wine took forever to arrive, but we're pretty used to that as well, and we were in a nice spot outside. Unfortunately, they were out of two of their five sides. A little disappointing, but ok. The sandwiches were not very ok, which was really disappointing, as they were about $10 each. But anyway, on with the point of my story.
While we were eating, we heard a waiter tell some new arrivals that the kitchen was a little backed up, so "take your time deciding." Then I thought I heard him say that they were out of coffee. I was pretty sure I misunderstood him, but about 10 minutes later another party sat down and were told the same thing. Now, without naming names, this cafe is directly opposite one of our best grocery stores and is right next door to our fancy organic one. Across the street are TWO coffee shops, one of which roasts its own beans on the premises. Couldn't somebody run over and buy a couple of pounds of coffee??? Come on, it's a breakfast place. Ya gotta have coffee!
I relate this story not to be mean-spirited - I'm sure they were slammed all weekend. But it's emblematic of why so many businesses fail: the inability to plan ahead, think creatively, take responsibility for decisions and take some action to enhance the customers' experience. Never mind enhance, meet their basic expectations. These little trendy restaurants come and go all the time around here in continual turnover. All that planning, investment, remodeling, stocking and training, but they're out of beans and can't go get some.
I got productive yesterday. I planted seeds for peas, arugula and mint, put up the greenhouse, weeded the front beds, planted annuals in the patio garden and cleaned up the iris cutting bed. Whew. Photo to come.
I'm just saying no to tomatoes this year. They take a lot of babying, and there's an incredible selection at the Wed. farmer's market from beefsteak to heirloom in every tomato hue possible. I've got a nice patch of parsley, shallots and strawberries that have obligingly spread, and the asparagus is commencing nicely. I'm going to go with them, as they're clearly happy. I've started the herb boxes and will grow basil in the greenhouse for emergencies.
On the lawn front, I've come to peace with a patchy lawn as long as I have boys and dogs enjoying it. I'm thinking of getting an electric mower. The reel mower is fun, but you have to go over the same patch a number of times to get a semi-smooth lawn. It's quite a workout, and not very efficient. Any recommendations?
Follow-up: too wet to take a photo outside, so I'm including this one of my lilacs - they're having quite a year!
Raising a child who has a different way of perceiving and interacting with the world is clearly tough. Doing it alone can be agonizing. H is extremely energetic and talkative and often has a hard time focusing (yes, we know the diagnosis). He's incredibly smart and funny and imaginative, but his active mind doesn't mesh well with linear tasks.
It's so clear to me and others who know him that he's going to accomplish something great in life. But he has to get through third grade, and right now, his personality is too big for a class of 25 kids. Last night we had another heart-to-heart, with tears on both sides. I tried to explain the square peg in the round hole. The square peg is perfect in its squareness but needs to try to squeeze into that hole sometimes as best it can. It's not that it's better for him, really, it's for the convenience of the rest of society. I never understood that until I had a square peg of my own.
His way is the right way for him. It's where creativity and genius live. But he has to be able to sit quietly in his seat to "succeed." So to accomplish that, it's recommended that we medicate his exuberance. Which breaks my heart.
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