Let It Snow...Let It Snow

Yup, this one is for REAL, like I am sitting at my desk looking out the window and there are BIG PUFFY flakes falling.

It isn't going to stick, at least not right now because it is far too warm for that at a balmy 36 degrees.

I know you poor saps in CA are suffering through one of those intolerable blue sky days with mid 70's temperatures... I am sorry.

Here, I can sip hot chocolate or tea, and gaze out the window at the winter almost wonderland... there, you are probably sitting at an outdoor cafe, 3 feet from the street with all those polluting automobiles spewing toxins on your ciabatta sandwich and your cappuccino. Sorry.

You are jealous, it is ok, I understand.

Ever tried to type with a kitten licking your fingers? It ain't easy. Ollie. I love little Ollie, but he is something else. Obssessed with food, much like Jaz and Tashi and boy can little Ollie Olfactory smell anything and everything.

He also shares Tashi's love of water. I have to be careful when running water in the kitchen sink. He jupms up and hooks his claws into my leg, right about where the bottom of my jeans pocket is. Yes, it hurts and yes he is trying to climb up me to get to the running water in the sink. I am not sure how long squirting water at him will keep him in line...

Little Scrapper still does not have a name. He has mellowed considerable over the last 10 days. I think he realizes he is not going to be put back in a cage for most of every day, and can relax. He is still a playful little guy, but not the wild child that arrived here. He likes to be close to me. He is somewhat like Snuggie. When he wants to rest, he is mama's boy, when he is awake he struggles like mad to get out of my hands... He is laying in my lap right now, ready for the afternoon nap.

Well the snow is now turning to rain, although it will probably turn back to snow again as the temperatures continue to drop...

So made a trip to THE local Trader Joe's (yes there is just one in the entire metro area...) for a bag of nan. I couldn't find any and asked one of the guys in those lovely printed shirts, he directed me to the frozen foods... grrrrrr. I asked the lady giving samples if she knew where I could get some fresh nan. Aside from buying it by the piece at an Indian place, nope. Nice. Well, she was giving samples of Cranberry Chevre. I swooned. It was wonderful. Never been a big fan of goat cheese as a stand alone, but this stuff was yummy as all get out.

Snuggie has made umpteen trips outside, only to return, sometimes cold, sometimes wet and cold. Poor baby is now lodged on the back of the couch, Jaz on the back of the loveseat and the babies are on the chaise in the office with me. Grooming incessantly before taking their long afternoon nap.

Well, back to school work.

Well, maybe after getting some mini-marshmallows and a cuppa hot chocolate...

I found a place to hang...

Ok, just a quickie...

I came down to the local community college... Sinclair... and went to their library to browse around.

I am happily surveying faces around me, and seeing a very international crowd. Most of the faces are under 30, but that is ok by me, it is nice to see the diversity all around me.

I may come down here weekly, as long as I am not working full-time.

This college has been managed very well over the years. They have very nice facilities, even if they have a Starbucks smack dad in the middle of the library.

This is one of the places on my short-list of places I would like to work.

OK, catch you later, got a mid-term to finish!

BTW - the Rough Riders (aka Ollie and the little guy with no name yet) are almost integrated with the Bathtub Boys. Jaz rarely hisses and will on occassion cuff Ollie for trying to eat out of the same bowl. Now Tashi had that option, in fact Jaz would move his head so Tashi could eat. The little guy is kind of afraid of Jaz, the size difference is really a big one, as he is much smaller than Ollie.

Snuggie has stopped growling directly at them, but still hisses. He won't sleep in the bed with us, but he has started coming into the office when they are in there... so slow progress is being made.

I still don't have a picture of little guy... sorry!

A choice 4 letter word...

S

N

O

W


yup.

this afternoon as I was driving my mom up to St. Mary's to pick up her clothes dryer from my sister's house. My sister was not using them anymore, so mom bought them off her. Just as we turned off 127 onto 219 I noticed the little white specks slapping my windshield.

It was too warm for it to lay on the car, road or anything as it was a whopping 37 degrees, but it was falling and it did it off and on all afternoon.

Brrrrrrrrr.

I like "driving to the snow and driving home from it" but, hey, this is Ohio and here I am and I can see mom nearly everyday and that is all more than worth it.

OK, gotta head over to her house again, her neighbor boy (17) earned his Eagle Scout award and they are having a party for him. He is as cute as the day is long, and I could not figure out why carloads of girls were not cruising the neighborhood scoping him out. Now I know, he cannot be popular if he is an Eagle Scout. Well, he is a damn fine young man and he is probably better off without being in the sights of a dozen young girls!

Trees finally planted - whew

Well, finally finished planting both trees.

Glad it was only 2. The soil here is clay and it can be tough to dig.

The trees are a Canadian Red Cherry or Chokecherry tree. It will have green leaves in the spring with white cluster blooms that are 3 to 6 inches long. By the end of June the leaves will be dark red and then turn more of a purple until they fall off in Nov or Dec. The berries are edible and a favorite of birds. The tree is abou 12 ft now and is planted on the north side of the house outside the dining room to block the view of the side of my neighbors house.

The other tree is the working tree - in several years it should be big enough to give the house some shade in the late summer afternoons. Due to the driveway, walkway and septic and leech lines, I really cannot safely plant a tree in a spot that will provide shade relief from the intense mid-day summer sun... too bad.

The working tree is an Autumn Blaze Maple. It will give some fantastic bright to dark red leaves next fall and may grow as much as 3 feet a year. It is planted to the west and south of the house. Far enough to not damage the septic and leech lines and far enough to not crack the concrete slab in the backyard.

I still have to clean the rest of mom's gutters out and one of mine leaks... and there is still a long list of to do's, but I am about to turn my attention to schoolwork and finding a job...

Wee Ollie and the little scrapper (he is a pisser... has pee'd on at least 3 different things in as many days... he is young, I hope it is age and acclimating to the new environ. He has a strong odor as well. Snuggie is gonna hate him. Ollie is perhaps the purrfect kitten.

The scrapper? Hellish little devil. He has sooooooooo much energy that sometimes when he is sitting still he shakes. He breathes fast and hard even when trying to go to sleep, turbo charged little guy.

Pictures will come soon.

The Slippery Slope...

here is a hint...

I just joined....

http://www.crazycatladies.org

ok, so here is the deal...

Little Ollie was spending his days somewhat alone, while Jaz and Snuggie, being big boys, came and went. I, of course have had to deal with things at mom's house, try to get something done around here, schoolwork, you know, life.

To be fair, Jaz would hang out inside while he was ill - he is back in action, btw - but then spends some time inside even when well. Well, he took to little Ollie pretty good and sweet little Ollie will run and jump square on his back. Jaz is 15.7 lbs Ollie, maybe 2, maybe...

Jaz, being the love daddy he is, just shrugs him off, sometimes will give him a 45 second wrestling session (guess who wins) and occasionally cuffs him lightly.

Snuggie is still royally pissed. Snuggie is also now on antibiotics. Yup, he had a blistery bump on his lower gum and under the BEST of circumstances trying to hold his mouth open long enough to inspect is just asking for trouble, so I did my best to figure out what it was and couldn't. Was worried he had a bad tooth because the area was black -now he has always had a bit of black pigment there but I don't recall it being near that large, then again, I don't spend a lot of time with my face in his little mouth...

so, the vet is happy to see me as I may be funding her retirement plan, well turns out it was some sort of cyst or a stick poke or something that blistered and then it broke before I got him to the vet, well it was mildly infected, so antibiotics for 5 days for him.

Well, back to my wee Ollie. (he doesn't seem so wee anymore...) Bored bored bored and as much as I'd love to spend all my days playing with him, I just cannot. And, yes, he is as soft as he looks.

So, on Tuesday a scrappy little fella roughly 2/3 Ollie's size came to live at Kia Rio. Yup, the wheels are coming off the bus.

For those of you counting, it is 4.

I have it on reasonably good authority (google searches) that 5 is the number that makes you the crazy cat lady (unless you have a farm) so, I am just on that slippery slope...

Little guy is hell on wheels. OMG. He spent 3 weeks confined at the humane society and he came out wound up like an eight day clock!

I hope he mellows out a bit. Poor Ollie got a bit more than we bargained for.

I don't have pics yet, or a name...

Those two are running helter skelter all over the office. Ollie stands on the desk and jumps down on him.

Snuggie has sussed out that something else is afoot, but is not clear on it yet.

Snuggie may pack his shrimp treats and split if I don't do this carefully. It was all for him, too. Little Tashi, sweet love, was his playmate and I wanted to make sure Snuggie had someone to have fun with. Well, he'll adjust. Hopefully before the retail orgy season is over. I know he will like Ollie. If little scrapper doesn't mellow some, they may not exactly hit it off...

I'll post his pics soon. He is a short hair, dark, and is very uniquely marked.

Ollie has jumped in my lap (apparently I am home base) twice just while I was writing this. Scrappy little guy is a meower too.

Better go wrestle Snuggie and give him his antibiotic.

The last time a young charasmatic father of 2 was elected

somebody...

(hint)

AIC ..

get your mirrors out folks, and read it backwards...

didn't want him in office and put an end to it.

I pray (and I don't do that often or lightly) for his young family that he does not become another successful hit for them.

Gas $1.95 per gallon (ok 9/10ths)

Well, despite colder than normal predictions for winter temps, a change in the Presidency and all the political unrest in the world (prior excuse used for fleecing drivers) the price of gas is steadily dropping in the face of the economic crisis and the Conspicuous Consumption Consumer Holiday in order to spur people to spend money on the retail and travel sector.

I still cannot fathom how millions and millions of people do not GET that the oil companies have been taking us to the cleaner and posting record breaking profits quarter after quarter, despite all the excuses to raise gas and here, when gas should be going higher, it has been cut in half.

I guess even when hit in the head with a 2 x 4 they cannot see the simple truth in their face.

Grrrrrrrr.

Jaz is up to 95% - I still have to get him started with the dry food, but he does fine with the canned stuff.

Little Ollie still has a puss oozing eye and is now sneezing out baby bits of blood. I called my vet like friend, Maria (bless her heart) to get her opinion on how much of Jaz's antibiotic to give him and if the terramyacin, or whatever it is (Tashi's old eye Rx) was reasonable safe for such a small guy.

So, hopefully he is on the mend as well. He still eats, drinks, poops, pee's and plays, but the eye has just been getting worse...

He scared me to death last night about 3 am. He got on my chest to lay down and within a few minutes he became excessively hot. It took me 20 minutes of messing with him and a cool wash cloth on his face to rouse him. I could not hear him breathing as I have been able to do since he got congested and I could not feel much in the way of his body moving with his breaths.

Well, he finally opened one peeper and tried to open the other one a little. He got up and ate a little and drank a little. He went back to sleep and I sat up wondering if he normally sleeps that deep everynight or if he was just spiking a temp. He doesn't normally get on my chest until about 6 am before we get out of bed...

Snuggie played with me a little tonight. Ollie jumped next to him and Snuggie did not notice him and ended up doing a 180 and hissing and growling like mad.

Someday they'll be buds... no wine before its time!