Just The Boys

I'm taking a quicky break from grading papers this morning. That's what I've been doing for the past three days--nothing but grading papers.

So this morning, I thought I'd show off some of our "boys." First meet the primary males in our colony. There's MC, the oldest. Then Fiesty, Blue, and Swirly. 

MC 

 

Fiesty eating his favorite--canned salmon 

 

Handsome Blue

                                                               Swirly showing off his colors

  They are all related to Merlin in one fashion or another. He is the granddaddy to all the above.

 

Merlin when he first came to live inside 

Then we have the "Newbies" who joined the colony over the past year or two. We have Blanco--who incidentally is also related to Merlin. Beamer and WaitAMinute came along a bit later.

Blanco 

 

  Beamer   

  

 

                                                                             WaitAMinute

Beamer is an orange tabby feral. I think he was someone's pet, turned out or lost, and became feral to survive. Many pet cats that are turned out don't make it. Beamer is one of the lucky ones. He found a pair of cat-crazy people who were willing to manage a colony. WaitAMinute was most likely was born feral. We believe he's Lacey's father because they have the same facial features.

Then we have Buddy and what could be his brother, son, father, uncle, cousin. You remember Buddy from the Halloween Post, dressing in his costume? Well this weekend, what could be his brother/son/ father/uncle/cousin joined us. Looks like a smaller version of Buddy and very friendly. Those two must have been raised together because they haven't fought at all. They share the front porch post and both chase dogs out of the yard. We are having a hard time naming him...so right now he's 2B.  

2B

He's hard to photograph 

 Buddy

He's not happy about sharing his top bunk

 Because they are both friendly, I believe them to be strays--not ferals. Stray cats can become feral in order to survive. Stray cats were once someone's pet. Some people abandon their cats, believing they can survive outdoors. As I said before, many abandoned cats do not make it.There are many reasons pet cats become stray cats,and I'll cover that in another post later.  Right now, I have papers to finish grading!

 

Photo Tag!

I was tagged to play by An Oklahoma Granny to play Photo Tag! Thank you for tagging me! How cool is this? :D 

Here's how the game works - The person who is tagged goes to the first photo file on his/her computer and then goes to the tenth photo in that file. 

The tagged person posts the picture on his/her blog and tells the story behind it.

The tagged person then tags a few people from the blogs he/she reads.

I have my photos organized by months so when I opened the file, August 2009 appeared first. So I opened that file and realized that I have it broken down into other folders. That's simply because I'm a crazy, OCD-anal retentive person. So I decided to just open the first folder, count to the tenth picture in that folder. 

The 10th photo in my first file in my August 2009 folder:

 This is a picture I captured of one of our ferals who was killed a few days later. Her name is Java. If you have been following the feral story posts, you know that Java is the first daughter of Frosty and Merlin, sister to our indoor kitty Topaz. We had been working with her, trying to convince her to stay with us, especially with winter approaching. We had set up several cat shelters, hoping that she would make one her home. This is her...Some evenings when the sun is just starting to set and the sky is cloaking itself in night time colors, I can hear her calling to me. I miss her still.

I'm tagging:
Terri at  TLSClayDesign 
Joan at  Teaching isn't for Wimps 
Jo-Lynne at Musings of a Housewife 

I just realized I need to broaden my reading list!  

Handmade USA

 

Last year, I decided to take the Handmade Pledge because I did not want to spend a lot of money that would go to Corporate World. I don't believe that Corporate World does anything more than subvert our governments, enslave the people, and create a waste of resources. That's another blog-story, however.

Because I can crochet, I made dishtowels, dishcloths, and potholder sets for everyone on our gift list. I actually started in August, crocheting first the potholders and dishcloths. I don't sew or even know how to sew, so I enlisted my friend JoAnn to cut and hem up the kitchen towels. She sent them back to me and I crocheted the trimmings. The sets were pretty and practical and a hit with most people on our gift list. 

This year, I got the idea of using my plastic canvas skills to create coasters for all the families. However, between school, paper grading, and colony management, I haven't found the time to do everyone a set. With the holidays right around the corner, I decided to send baked goodies this year. I sent a few lucky people baked goodies last year and found out that it was a hit--especially for those who were too busy to do a lot of baking themselves. I'll save the plastic canvas works for next year--when I can work on the gifts all year round.

Now my husband and I haven't sent out holiday cards for a long time. Nonetheless, I wanted to send them out this year. And I didn't want to buy a box of cards--I wanted something special, unique--different. That sent me to Etsy to look for holiday cards. My oh my--did I ever find so many unique, cute, precious, artistic cards that were perfect for the holidays. 

But here's my other dilemma. Our card circle includes just about every flavor of holidaying. Ok--let me rephrase that. 

We have friends who are Jewish, Muslim, Wiccan, Christian, Catholic, Native American, and atheists. We have family members who celebrate a variety of holiday traditions, have different beliefs, follow different religions. I needed cards that respected everyone. I needed something that could fit into everyone's belief systems without offending anyone.  I found the perfect cards at 

 Studio Petite

These cards made me GIGGLE. That right there made it perfect. I will confess that I got lost in the store because I like the artwork. Before I realized it, I wanted this card and that card and they weren't holiday cards. I had to start over. D who has eclectic tastes in art had to help me choose. So we settled on a couple of designs first. We even found a card that really represented US. 

"Kitty Buddies" by Jennifer Lambien of Studio Petite

  

I've found some other wonderful card artists on Etsy as well. I will not be buying cards at a box store again. 

So my question are--do you do the holidays? Are you sending out cards? What are your favorite holiday traditions?

Malls and Shopping--Oh My!

With the holiday season just around the corner, and even our local box store is filling up on holiday "goodies-n-gifts," I sit smug at my computer because I'm not shopping during the holiday madness this year...again!

I've always hated shopping. When it was the rage in the 70s and 80s to hit the malls, I would cringe at the thought. All those people crowded in one tiny space breathing/using up my air...the thought that "we" bought this concept just slays me. My sisters were Mall Girls, dragging my mother and my brother to the mall where they could shop, eat, entertain themselves all in one building. I would rather stay home and do dishes or laundry, scoop dog poop and litter boxes---anything but go to the mall. That hasn't changed for me as I've gotten older.

I don't even like shopping for food--unless I'm at the Farmer's Market. That's another story.

Anyway, when I got married, my husband (who, incidentally,  hates crowds as much as I do) showed me eBay. I fell into ecstasy. Here was a way to shop without crowds! Wooohooo Here I come!

 So over the past seven years, I found my favorite shopping places online. Here are a few of them.

TLSClayDesign

I loved this bead but unfortunately I didn't jump on it. Some lucky person owns this set of beads.  However, I have two full cases of Terri Stone's beads, so what does that say about me?. 

 BeeTreeByMe

 I'm the proud owner of two of Mary Ellen's  butterfly fairies, dozens of her flower beads, and several of her other fairies. I own a box of her beads...again what does that say about me?

 

iKandiClay 

 I also own a few of Ivy's beads. Ok...I confess! I'm a polymer clay addict! Ivy also owns an eBay shop, which is where I first saw her beads. Coincidently, eBay is how I found TLSClayDesign and BeeTreebyME. I'm slowly adding to my collection of polymer clay beads and I only have one small case of Ivy's beads so far. SO FAR....

LanyardLady

While I usually purchase beads for my own beading needs/addiction, this is a new favorite of mine. Cherin has some really cool lanyards, which are better than the old cloth kind that get ugly or already were ugly to begin with.  The best part is that she's already taken out the guess-work in beading these pretty yet functional pieces! 

 That's just a few of my favorite online shopping places. What are your favorite places to shop? 

Confessions of a Salt Addict

 

Yesterday, I spent from 10AM until 3:20PM at the state teaching hospital. This was because I had a bunch of appointments with my cardiologist and my vascular surgeon and everything in between. 

Back in 2007, I discovered I was allergic to food preservatives: MSG, BHA, BHT,  high fructose corn syrup , malto-dextrin, autolyzed yeast, food starches, hydrolized anything, any thing soy, and flavorings. That severely cut into my diet because--well gee--everything in the stores were full of food preservatives.  Just about the time I had it all figured out a year later, I developed the flu, which later turned into pneumonia. I was placed on antibiotics and steroids to help combat this one. Turns out I was allergic to the medications and that landed me in the hospital.

While I was in the hospital, it was discovered I had high blood pressure. The night I was admitted into ICU, I had a heart attack. I was only 46 years old for crying out loud! Later D and I find out that I must have had high blood pressure for years (although it never really showed up at any of my extremely rare doctor visits) because my kidneys are severely damaged.  

When I got out of the hospital (I had been hospitalized 9 times in 6 months), I realized that I had a choice. I could go on the way I was going and die by the time I was 50. Or I could do something that helped me live a bit longer.  Because when the bottom line came up, I wasn't ready to go for a multitude of reasons. 

My choices were fairly simple. I already gave up smoking--the number one reason for the high blood pressure and the kidney damage.  I needed to do more than that though. I had to cut back on my salt addiction. Because I was a total salt slave. 

I LOVE salty foods. The saltier the better. My favorite french fries were those I could bathe in salt and dip in malted vinegar.  I loved margaritas with salted rims. I loved salty Chinese foods, Mexican/Southwestern foods, Italian foods like garlic bread made with garlic SALT. I loved me some good salty-n-spicy barbeque and grilled meats and baked potatoes drizzled in salt. I was a complete addict, total slave to the mineral.

At first I figured out (so I thought) that I just needed to cut back on some of the sodium intake.  You can laugh now. I do. I found out that the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine recommends between 1500 mg to 2300 mg of sodium per day. One teaspoon of salt contains approximately 2400 mg of sodium--to give you a guideline. So I started adding up my sodium and realized that I was ingesting more than that. Not good.  I started cutting back. First to 1500 mg of sodium, then 1200 mg per day, then 1000 mg per day. 

It took time, but because my kidneys do not eliminate salt easily anymore, I had to learn how to do with a pinch. I love to use kosher salt because #1--It's lower in sodium and #2--the grains are big enough for me to count just 20-30 of them for that salty taste.  I had to learn how to cut back on things like baking soda for homemade tortillas and bread without compromising the quality. I started experimenting with spices and freshly ground pepper to change my cravings for salt. I learned to make my own homemade salad dressings out of things like fresh lime juice, a bit of honey, green chile powder, and roasted garlic for my salads. 

I'm down to 800 mg of sodium per day. The best part is my blood pressure has stabilized. That's helped my kidneys. It's also helped me to lose weight because I'm not retaining all that extra fluid. That's what my cardiologist and my vascular surgeon told me yesterday. 

Healthy Diet Recommendations

 

 

Social Control

Do you like Daylight Saving Time? Do you look forward to getting up an hour earlier in the spring and getting that extra hour to sleep in in the fall? Or are you like me--totally against it?


I hate Daylight Saving Time changes. Every year it gets harder and harder for me to adjust. In the spring I have to get up an hour earlier than my usual 5AM.  In the spring, because of the change in sleeping patterns and the need to wake up earlier, I'm more susceptible to colds, end of flu seasons, and other viruses. It took me nearly a month to adjust to the new time change last March. This fall, I find myself up before the alarm clock goes off. It doesn't do me any good to try and grab that extra hour of sleep because I'm wide awake. WIDE AWAKE.

I see DST as form of social control. Can "they" make us do something unnatural and inconsistent as get up an hour earlier in the spring and sleep in an hour in the fall? "They" have succeeded in doing this since 1966 with the Uniform Time Act. In 2005, "they" decided to see if we would shorten our hibernation by  passing the Energy Policy Act that came into effect 2007. "We" follow along with whatever "they" decide for our clocks.

I wonder what "they" have in store for us in the next couple of years... 

Sunrise

 

A few minutes later 

Yesterday....

Yesterday was Halloween--the one holiday my husband of 7 years and I do together big. The week before, I was at a lost because I did not know what to do with my DieHard figure this year. However, my husband and I are a team. He thought of the idea and I was able to implement it.

DieHard 2009

 

The other side of the porch 

 Our cats even got into the Halloween Spirit. One of the strays living with us is Buddy. D explained that we were going to have Trick-or-Treaters coming to the door and we had to temporarily move his house--Buddy's not my husband's. Of course that meant D had to explain the whole concept of Halloween and Trick-or-Treating to this cat; including getting dressed in costumes, yelling "TRICK-R-TREAT" at the top of their lungs, and our passing out goodies. So Buddy decided to join the fun. 

Buddy putting on his "costume" 

In our town, whole families dress up and go door-to-door, trick-or-treating. We like it. I've read and heard some complaints about teenagers and parents with babies nabbing candy, but I believe this is a night for fun that is for everyone. 

Whole family-gangs trick-or-treating 

Of course it was the first Halloween for the 4 Kittens. D explained to them that people come to the door, dressed crazily and Mom (that's me) gives them candy and goodies so they go away.  I had to think about that concept for a bit. 

Cuddles and Lacey watching Trick-or-Treaters coming to the door 

I wish I had the camera handy when the Mad Hatter (complete with teacup), the  Penguin, and Flu Man came to the door. They took the prize for best costume in my estimation. 

I have fun with the kids on Halloween. The older kids get to work for their treats. Picture this scenario:

Treaters: "TRICK-R-TREEEEEEEAT!"
Me: Look what we have here. What are you? (points to the first teenybopper who is wearing devil's horns and dressed in goth clothing)
First Teenybopper: I'm like a devil. 
Me:  Like a devil? You mean you don't know for sure if you are a devil or not? 
First Teenybopper: Well some people call me a demon and others call me a devil.
Me:   What do you call yourself?
First Teenybopper: *shrugs shoulders* I don't know....
Me: I call myself Cathryn personally. But that's also my name.   
Nervous laughter from all the teenyboppers.
Me: What are you supposed to be? (pointing to the next teenybopper)
Second Teenybopper: I'm an emo fairy. 
Me: Well that's an oxymoron if I ever saw one. Emo and fairy are just not congruent concepts. 
Nervous giggles. I realize they don't understand a word I said. 

Treaters: "TRICK-R-TREEEEEEEAT!"
Me: Well...look who came to our door. What are you? (pointing to the first one dressed sort of like an October-fest child)
First Treater: I'm a beer girl. 
Me: A what? 
Chorus from all treaters: A BEER GIRL!
First Treater: You know in the olden days, they used to serve beer in these dresses. 
Me: *Thinking that them olden days weren't too far long ago in my memory and no one ever served beer in those get-ups* Honey! I found someone to serve you a beer!
Giggles from the treaters. 
Me: And what are you supposed to be?
Second Treater: I'm a Prom Queen. 
Me: Where's your tiara?
Second Treater: I don't have one. 
Me: How can you be a Prom Queen without a tiara? Where's your Prom King?
Second Treater: I don't have one.
Me: No tiara and no Prom King. *shakes my head* (Points to the next one.)
Third Treater: I'm a French Maid. 
Me: Do you speak French?
Third Treater: No...
Me: So what makes you a French Maid?
Third Treater: My costume. 
Me: Ok Miss Maid--I have some dishes that need washing. 
*Nervous laughter and giggles from all the treaters* 


 Treaters: "TRICK-R-TREEEEEEEAT!"
Me: Alright--we have a SuperMan, a Lion, a Princess, and a Pirate at the door. My oh my!
Four eager faces looking at me. I say and do nothing for a minute until one says "Trick or Treat!" in a hopeful tone.
Me: Ok kids--where's my trick?
Eyes blink several times before giggles erupt. Invariably one will ask, "What trick?"
Me: Isn't that the deal? You give me a trick and I give you a treat? 

*One clever child made a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup disappear in 3 seconds.*

Yeah--I love Halloween!