New Foster Kid

The house has been overly full of the canine crew this week. Stephanie and Jordan went to Jamaica for a week after finals so I got their dogs, Grace and Marley - that made five. On Wednesday we got another addition, a foster doberman in need of some TLC. He's from a rescue organization, Doberman Pinscher Rescue at North Florida, and since I'm on vacation for the next two weeks I figured I could spend some quality time getting him in acceptable social condition for his 'forever' home. His name is Dillion on the link, but Judy (creator of the rescue org) dubbed him Scooby and it fits him to a T - a big goofy boy. His medical records are all under Dillon, so that's his official rescue name - came from the Atlanta area.

I'm adding their link to my list of 'places to go...' so anyone can visit. There are links to pet retailers who contribute to the organization as well. Lots of homeless dobie's in the world to care for. Scooby has to undergo heartworm treatment. Judy thinks he must have just been tied out to a tree somewhere - he still has some bleached out blonde hair on his otherwise beautiful auburn coat. His ears also sport a few small rips and tears - either from fighting or maybe other puppies chewing on them, and his lower right canine tooth is broken off just above the gumline. He's a handful and will definitely need to go to a home where mom or dad is an Alpha (and no cats - he thinks they'd be good snacks). Calyx, Felix and Bailey are wondering what the heck is going on that they can't be in the house right now. They'll survive in the interim.


Here he is with Marley - a rare moment of stillness - they're usually wrestling, running around the house and moving furniture along the way...

Can't get enough of that face...

What a poser! I just can't resist it!

I'm in bed, test driving some new flannel sheets. I am obsessed with soft fabrics, always have been - sheets, pillow cases, bath towels, kitchen towels... I used to take my own sheets and pillows with me when I went to visit friends or relatives when staying overnight (really! I did!). I've transferred it to both of my kids as well. When they were younger they were known to say things like "Mom, I can't sleep on those sheets - they're too scratchy" when visiting homes that did not cater to 'linen sensualists'. We also had a black hooded rat named Flannel (fla nel' - she was French) who loved the little flannel sleeping bags I made for her. Yes, rats make wonderful pets!

Anyway, these new sheets are heavenly. I have a couple other sets, but these are the best I've ever felt. The color couldn't be more perfectly named - they look exactly like real chamois and are just as soft. They also look like they were custom colored for my quilt.... To truly appreciate them you must have freshly shorn legs (the gals anyway). Might want to give 'em a whirl!

Sammy's new trick

Sammy is the latest kitty in the zoo. Stephanie adopted him as a tiny kitten (stray) and Bailey had to move home because she was very mean to him. Turns out there is Kitty Karma in the world - since she moved home Calyx has taken to stalking her and picking fights with her when they are in close proximity (karma, karma, karma). Bailey loves living at home where she can go outside. She spends hours sitting on the fence observing the squirrels. She was housebound at Steph's apartment because it is on a very busy college campus street.

Anyway, Sammy is yet another black and white kitty who has joined our family zoo. He does well in the apartment setting, having absolutely no inclination to venture outside. He has a new trick - well not really a trick so much as a really useful new habit - he's using the toilet now. Really! He follows Stephanie around from room to room and just decided that he was going to use the potty after she did one morning.

She sent me a text message while I was at work one morning; "MOM! Sammy just peed in the toilet right after I did!". She'd just gotten up, visited the bathroom (for obvious reasons), washed her hands, brushed her teeth, heard a tinkling in the toilet and turned around to see Sammy doing his thing. She praised him heartily and he's using it all the time now. You know what they say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery - well YEAH! He seems to be very proud of himself, and likes to watch the flushing as well.

Here he is...






























How's that for a kitty accomplishment? Steph said she thought about teaching him how to flush, but then thought he might enjoy that so much her water bill would more than she could handle (-:

MIA...am back!

Well heavens, hard to believe I've been a blog slacker since APRIL! I returned to work at my old office at the end of May, and have been wrapped up in getting back into the work routine - and Hurricane Gustav. I returned to work as an underwriter, but knew I'd get 'drafted' into claims if we had a storm hit and Gustav and Ike spoiled my nice quiet life in underwriting.

Summer FLEW by and Gustav smacked into Louisiana on September 1st, so I've been a claims examiner since then. This should be my last week with claims, next week is a full week of vacation and TURKEY! Yummmmmmmmm.

Veteran's Day was a trip to the beach (St. George Island) for Stephanie and me; my dad's 75th birthday...folks were at the beach for the week and we ventured down to help celebrate the b-day. It was very windy, but fairly warm. We went into Apalachicola and had lunch at The Owl Cafe. Yummy food and great company with my mom & dad (am very lucky to still have two awesome parents to hang with!).

After lunch my mom and I headed for Riverlily for some quick shopping while my dad and Stephanie walked along the water looking for good photo opportunities. Stephanie is a great photographer - has that artsy eye. I'll have to get her to send me some of her pictures so I can use them to fill up blog space!

I did manage to click a couple of decent shots as the sun was going down and the moon was coming up (2 days before the full moon).








Moon over Palm Tree











Mystery People on Beach















That was my best day since starting the claims madness - Louisiana people are nuts, by the way. I will be very glad to get back to my agents...(mostly semi-sane folks). Here's a shot of the pile of adding machine tape under my desk....















Doesn't look quite as impressive as it does in person - nearly a whole roll. My co-workers keep asking me why I don't throw it away. I just tell them that I'm saving it - packing material - for when they have to box me up and send me to the State mental hospital!

Not much else going on - oh, did have a kitchen countertop debacle - will report on that later, with photos of course. Other than that it's just been work, work, work. My relaxation is spending evenings with my critters and some TV or a movie.






Bailey in her favorite position.

Myrtle, up close and personal (gotta work on the 'green eye')

Off to visit The Sand Man now. I promise not to be MIA for seven months again!

Spring Colors and The Battle of The Bugs

I've brightened up the master bedroom a bit with a colorful quilt...neat bargain find from Overstock - already looks vintage and well loved. Now we're colorful inside and out.

Myrtle likes it...

Today was another beautiful day. The weather was cloudy in the morning, but sunny and warm (79) in the afternoon. I sat in the driveway in an attempt to get close enough to Shade (one of the feral kitties I trapped as a kitten years ago...) to apply some Advantage between her shoulder blades. I have no hope of getting that close to her brother, Oscar, anymore; he's reverted back to his feral ways and I only catch an occasional glimpse of him at night when he comes into the garage to eat.

As I was biding my time, I watched some ants excavating dirt from a crack in the driveway - gotta wonder what they're building under there. I believe they were Florida carpenter ants, but I'm not an ant expert so they could be another variety.

I enjoyed watching them, noticing that they appear to have similar tendencies to human workers in their approach to their jobs. They were all the same size (~1/4"). Some carried a relatively large glob of dirt, while others appeared to carry only a single grain.

The ones with the large globs carried them 6-7" away from the crack and moved very quickly along the way to and from the crack. They were the 'happy worker ants', which appear to be thinking happy ant thoughts like "Whoo hoo! Gotta get this glob of dirt WAY far away from the crack and hurry back to get another glob! Whoo hoo! I love my job!"

Then there were the 'slacker ants'. They're the ones carrying no more than one grain of dirt at a time, and they don't even bother to come all the way out of the crack - they just poke their heads out of the top and dump their little load right there at the opening. They move much more slowly than the 'happy worker ants' and appear to be thinking things like "Good god, how much longer do I have to haul this stupid dirt out of this crack, I hate this job." Such is ant life.

Shade's curiosity got the better of her and she came over to see what I was watching, since it wasn't her anymore. I got in a quick petting session and then snuck the Advantage on her while she was watching Tigger lounging in the grass. All the critters, except for Oscar, got their first dose of flea poison (I've tried all the 'natural' stuff and it DOESN'T WORK) for the season. Let the bugs begin...

I'm moving...

Check out what The Florida Legislature is worried about these days...Truck Nutz. They're passing a bill to ban them. Who gives a flip, and why are they spending their time (and our tax dollars) hotly debating balls on trucks? Just another redneck truck accessory, ugly as they are (at least they aren't hairy). Note in the article Jim King (former Senate President) said he had a set on his truck, but removed them per his wife's request....he was probably just missing his own, he's about 5' tall and 5' wide and hasn't seen them in many, many years (: Robin, would you like a set for your Jetta? I've seen them in shiny silver...would look really nice with the Jetta's black paint...

Cabinet progress...

Whew! Long week working on cabinets last week! I started on the kitchen...lower cabinets complete on one side...lowers on the other side and all uppers to go!

The old 1980's cabinets...



After stripping, adding trim, staining and sealing! The color is darker than the photo depicts...and I tried with every setting on my camera to get it to come out right! It's a deep, rich, dark walnut and you don't see as much of the grain in the wood as you do in this photo. Still have to do the baseboards...and new countertops are coming as well.

I didn't get the 'faux drawer' in the original picture. It was just a drawer front secured in place under the sink where you can't have a drawer! I got this nifty tip out tray and made that space useful. Most newer kitchens cabinets have them, and I just love 'em. It keeps the sponge and scrub brush tucked away when you aren't using them.

So far so good. Recycling the old uglies and keeping stuff out of the landfill! Don't get me wrong; I do love old stuff, and have several antiques around the house I've inherited from grandparents and a great, great aunt. Those things are pretty and have character. The kitchen cabinets, not so much (;

Have a great week!

Kitty Alarm

Ah HA

This was particulary true today, the largest segment in the pie chart...

Tandem napping, or napping tandem

Flowers along the way...

Here are some pictures of what I have planted so far...still haven't finished getting them all in their pots. I can't remember the names of all of them (some new to me this year) so I'll improvise ('cause I'm too lazy to go get the little name stakes I saved - they're outside).

Verbena, something yellow, coral something and white bacopa...

Yellow daisy-mum thing, purple super bells and more white bacopa.

Baby purple fountain grass, and a couple of little verbenas to keep it company until it fills up the pot (won't take long)!

Boston fern in neat black iron basket with coco mat liner (great for ferns...)

The mutant non-Easter lilies...more are popping open every day!

Spring Fever...

Before I get into the Spring aspect of this post, here is a photo of my trusty blog assistant, Myrtle. Think she could get ANY closer? She is truly a Velcro dog...

Lookie what I got today at Tallahassee Nurseries...

The weather has been soooooo perfect the last few days. Today was pretty windy and a bit chilly, but the sky was clear blue and the sun was working overtime. I will share my flower creations after I finish them all...I ran out of potting soil and didn't feel like going out for more. Off to the store in the morning.

After I ran out of dirt I stripped one of the cabinet doors in the kitchen. The Miracle Erasers I ordered arrived, and I had to test one out. They really do work, but it's not quite as tidy as the web site photos make it look (warning label says to wear gloves, a mask and protective eye wear). It's like a large block of pumice that smells like sulfur.

Instead of having to deal with stripping glop, you have to deal with a lot of black dust particles. The eraser wears away as you use it, so there's a lot of dust. I used it outside so a large portion of it blew away (and in my eye once, owwwww) due to the wind today. I'm going to get some stripper tomorrow and see which one is easier - I have many cabinets and cabinet doors ahead of me. The doors can go outside, but I have the built-in part to deal with as well.

I should be in my office catching up on paperwork, but I just can't make myself stay inside when it's so wonderful outside. My plan, for the last several days, has been to take advantage of the outdoors during the day, then do paperwork in the evening...riiiiight....maybe tomorrow.

Hoppy Day!

Every day is Bunny Day at my house...this trio is on the back porch, under an asparagus fern...

I surfed the 'Net for some cute bunny pictures for my Easter post, and here are a few of the cutest to me, and I hope the Internet Police don't come get me for using other people's photos!:

Love the ferret/bunny...we've had ferrets and they are very comical pets (also very stinky and messy!).

Here are some non-Easter lilies, they were marked as Stargazer, but they must be mutants because they are huge. They also don't have the super-duper smell most Stargazers do...





Happy Easter!

Bailey's first day out...

I can't believe I haven't introduced Bailey yet. When Stephanie moved into her apartment she needed a cat to really feel at home. Unfortunately (but not for Bailey) all of our cats here at home are indoor/outdoor and she needed a strictly indoor cat - lives on a busy college campus street. So off to the animal shelter she went. There, waiting just for Stephanie, was Bailey - formerly named Cheyenne by the shelter folks.

Cheyenne (now Bailey) was 'on sale' for a $15 adoption fee, because she had been there 60+ days (and her kennel card said 'will bite' - wonder why nobody adopted her?). Of course Stephanie accepted the 'will bite' challenge and asked one of the workers to let her out of her kennel. It was love at first bite - in a good way. This poor kitty, locked up for 60+ days and living who knows where before she was impounded, had soooooooo much energy she just couldn't wait to use it up on someone!

Now, let me interject here that her bites don't hurt. She plays rough and is mouthy (like a puppy), and it takes a special kind of cat person to know this and not be intimidated when those teeth are on your arm. Lucky for Bailey Stephanie knows a cool cat when she finds one! She's calmed down considerably since she's been in her new home...

Here is Bailey's photo spread...

This is the photo the shelter used for their adoptive pets photo gallery on our local paper's web site. Kinda pitiful and scrawny looking.

60+ days and a few pounds later, her first day out of the 'clink' and visiting at our house. She's keeping an eye on the dogs...

Back off you dogs...(you will notice she has no tail...)

I can relax now, I have the dogs under control...

Goin' for a ride...on to her new home at Steph's apartment! Don't know too many cats who are so nonchalant about car rides! Nothing ruffles her fur...

Bailey got her new name after a few days...we found a web site with a couple thousand cat names (some with definitions) and Bailey was defined as 'half smooth and creamy-half nuts'. She is one cool kitty...

Dogs demand equal face time...

The dogs heard about The Cat Lineup and have come to me pleading for their turn on the blog. So here they are...


This is Raven, lounging in the sun on the dock at the river house. She is 10+, found as a grown dog when she was 2+. She used to be solid black with just a little white spot on her chest!

Here's Cody, he's 6. He's checking to see who's watching him before he disappears into the pampas grass...


The tiniest, and most cantankerous of the group, Grace. She's 2.5 and has no idea she only weighs 6 lbs. She lives with my daughter, at her apartment (with Bailey the cat). She is uppity because she is the only purebred in the group...
















Myrtle, 2, is concentrating hard on something here (lips are pursed), and listening backward!














This is the most recent acquisition, Marley. My daughter and my sweetie's son adopted him a couple of weeks ago. They live in the same apartment complex and share custody (: Marley's probably about 10-11 months old. Is he cute, or what? Looks like a baby lion to me...

Cabinet project

I've been a post slacker again...but have been busy with other life projects! I'm currently obsessed with updating the look of my 1983 kitchen and bathroom cabinets (same ones in both places...). I have numerous home improvement projects that are about 90% complete - some started long ago and far away.


I started the master bath cabinets this week...figured I'd experiment in there, see how they turned out, then progress to the kitchen. I removed the cabinet doors, then half way through sanding/prepping thought that I should have taken a 'before' picture. Here is one of the kitchen cabinets beneath the sink...lovely, huh?
Nice 80's Fruitwood stain and 'fancy' routed pattern. Pardon the unkempt look, and the grout still stuck to the baseboard from my daughter's tile work!

It took me a whole day to prep and complete ONE door. I did remember not to panic about that fact, since the first attempt at something new is always the worst part - the rest was a piece of cake (or was it mud pie?).

Here is a shot of the sanded door, less the hinges and handle. I had already painted the backs of the remaining three, and thought to photograph along the way.

Here are a couple of the close to completed thing...still have the knobs and trim to complete.

More to follow..

Posting slacker...

Okay, so I haven't been doing such a great job of keeping up the blog the last couple of weeks. I've been fighting the winter plague (cold/flu/bronchitis) and feeling generally yucky. I've been out and about a little this week, and perked myself up with some tulips from The Fresh Market.





















I love flowers - all kinds. I guess if I had to pick a favorite, to have around all the time, it would have to be Stargazer lilies. They smell incredible - really fresh and heady. I have a vivid memory of attending a memorial service at the home of a friend who's mother had passed away and being hit at the door with that scent. There was a flower arrangement that was about six feet tall (no lie - it was on a giant table in a giant room) and it had a ton of Stargazers in it...I wanted to curl up under it and stay as close to it as I could get.

Another favorite is the gardenia. They also have an overwhelmingly wonderful scent. My only complaint is that they only bloom for a couple of months in the late Spring, and they don't last more than a couple of days as cut flowers.

My mom & dad have a giant gardenia bush at one end of their swimming pool. I like floating around in the pool at that end when they're blooming...sunning and smelling flowers at the same time...doesn't get much better than that! I am sooooo ready for Spring and Summer...don't like the cold!

Cold, rainy day...

I've been on the verge of dozing off since I got up this morning. It's been a cold, rainy day, and I just haven't been able to shake off the drowsies (I think I am solar powered). Here's the radar for Tallahasse and the Southeast region at 6:28pm...


Looks like it's blowing over, but the forecast is for rain the rest of the week.

Here's a much cuter picture of rain, I think I prefer it.



Myrtle says 'hi' and to tell everyone to relax and take a nap...seems to be a dog credo or something...
it's what they do the most of around here (-:

Here's a neat link to some pretty rainbow pictures and poems... let's hope we see some around here soon!

Stay warm and dry, and wish for Spring...