Today's Catnip - Kayla's Lap Is Ready

The cutest thing today - Kayla observes me intently as I sit down on the sofa, then makes a little chirrup and runs over eagerly the minute she sees my legs fully outstretched. She will then stretch out on my lap for hours if I let her.

Her Majesty likes her lap ONLY in the correct formation. Legs fully outstretched, crossed at the ankles acceptable. NO BLANKETS covering legs. She will circle insistently, pointedly stare and meow at the offending item until it is removed. If I shift, she scolds me. If I talk, she scolds me. If I move to get up, she scolds me. If I breathe deeply, her tail swishes in annoyance.

Ahhhh, the joys of being dictated to by a teeny cat.

Kitties Seem Ok

So far so good. Came thru the weekend without any problems, and I think we've passed the most critical period. Symptoms would have surfaced by now. Everyone's eating, drinking and peeing normally. Poops are solid.

But biology is unpredictable, and I'll breathe easier after a month, I think.

Kitchen Wall One Done!

Took most of Friday thru 11pm, but the largest wall was washed, spackled, sanded, prepped and painted!! Counters and everything cleaned! Woohoo!

Used 'Vermont Cream', a pale warm white, which didn't clash with the pretty accent wall on the left, kinda bluish-grey-green. I love that color, and now I can't remember what the heck it was. Couldn't remember any of the test swatches I'd painted on either. How long ago was this project! LOL. Wish I'd started this blog earlier, then I could've searched it for the colors.

Only bad thing was the paint tape tore off part of the wallpapered ceiling. WALLPAPERED CEILINGS. GRRRRR. So I got a nice square cut off, but the whole thing'll need removing. It's high time, but I was hoping to put it off a while longer, when we'd just rip the whole soffit off. Without the hideous brown paper, the space looks so much brighter already. Can't wait to remodel.

Painting The Kitchen

As if finishing one closet wasn't enough to make me feel so productive, I've stripped off all the nasty wallpaper from the kitchen and prepped it. Started painting with the 'clay pebble', discovered it was too green, have 8 areas of different colors now. Will pick the color tomorrow and finish the job.

On a roll!!

Project Office Closet Done!!!!

Can't believe it. Done. Done. Done. YIPPPPPEEEEE!!!!!!!

Just decided to look at the measurements, flipped thru all the pics I'd taken years ago, and found measurements to suit. Home Depot wire shelves. Nothing fancy. Glad one of the rechargeables worked on the drill.

All loaded up with the file boxes, etc. Soooo happy. One of the reasons I started this blog was to keep a timeline for all projects, so I don't let it go so long again. It had been a year since my first post on planning the closets (again!), and I thought, ok, that's enough. Gotta do it. Stop being so picky about the damned appearance - nothing fancy needed, no-one's looking in them. So, done! 3 more to go.

WOOHOO!

Kayla's Home II

Finally, she's home-home. All blood tests negative. Monitor for the next 48 hrs. Poor little thing, both legs shaved and poked. Ate a meal right away, though, and now looking out the guest room window. Bright and alert. The vet tech said how beautiful she looked.

Surprisingly, no hissing from Ginza. But Pixie looks so jumpy! She's spooked by Kayla, like she completely doesn't remember her at all. Wow, she really does have the least memory of the bunch, LOL. (But she seemed to remember where Mozart's body was.) She wouldn't even eat around her. Not even a treatie. She *never* turns down food. Now I'm really worried, maybe SHE'S the one who ate it?

Oh, I'm a nervous wreck.

Pixie Is Puzzled And I'm Neurotic.

LMAO!!!! This morning, took Kayla back to the vet for followup tests, and put Ginza in the bathroom just in case he horked up his food again. So the Baby was all by herself, and she looked sooooo confused! She kinda tiptoed around the house, and kept looking up at the slightest sound to see if one of the others was coming. She came over and stared into my face a few times, waiting for something, then she'd look around some more. Not sure what it meant, other than 'what's going on?' Funny.

BTW, Ginza's had a non-horking streak for a week, until last night, which esp. freaked me out yesterday, thinking uh-oh, maybe HE'S the one after all, until I got a grip. Then I was closely watching Pixie too, and she looked a little extra sleepy, and I thought, uh-oh, is she lethargic? This morning, Ginza ate like a horse - and kept it down. Pixie, though, didn't eat all her food, which is unusual. Maybe that's the loss of appetite?

I'm just unsettled because Kayla didn't hork up the evidence that would have proved 100% that she was the culprit.

Ohhhh, the imagination and neurosis where my kitties are concerned. LOL.

Kayla Back Home

Yay, poor little girl is home. Still has catheter in her leg - poor thing - the other one was shaven and bloody too. Not the most trained vet tech, she said Kayla struggled too much for her to put it in. Got another one to do it.

Vet was pretty confident she wouldn't have any real bad side effects, since she only ate a daffodil flower head, and we caught it immediately.

- They induced vomiting for an hour. Lots of foam, no flower.
- Administered activated charcoal.
- Administered IV fluids to help flush things out faster.

- 4 hrs when symptoms start to show.
- 12-24 hrs before all toxins will get out of her system.
- Watch for vomiting, drooling, lethargy. Coma and death for this kind of thing in a week.

Read online that it could take up to 3 days for symptoms, so I'll be worried sick about all of them till then.

Still kicking myself for being brain-dead.

Kayla In The Hospital

Rushed poor Kayla to the vet this morning, and she's getting IV fluids now to help flush out any bad toxins from the half daffodil flower she ate. I managed to pull 2 petals away from her mouth. Vet reassured me that the flower isn't as toxic as stem ingestion.

Only now I'm a little freaked out, because she didn't vomit it back up, just foam, they said, and I figured she would since I got her in there within 15 mins of ingestion. Now that leaves a nasty little worry at the back of my mind that maybe one of the others really ate that flower? Now I'm trying to replay over and over where everyone was while I had my back turned for *just that minute*.

Grilled the vet tech who had no info on whether anything preventative I could do for the other two. Vet not available. Done a bunch of reading myself. Wonder where to get activated charcoal. Will ask vet this ev. when I pick Kayla up.

Kicking myself for being a moron and not enclosing the flowers right away.

Got A Pic of Stone Wall I Want

Yippee. Parked further up from where I usually park to see A. Noticed the boulder wall, looks really nice and natural, exactly what I want. After whacking the camera a few times, managed to get a couple good shots.

TV - Montalbano: Par Condicio

Overall a good episode, except for the ridiculousness of the staged meeting with Montalbano and the heads. A mafia don's son-in-law is found dead at the bottom of a quarry. No accident, his face was blown off before his fall. It seems to have all the signs of a mob hit. Needless to say, it starts a mob war between the Cuffaros and Sinagras. Only Montalbano doesn't think it's a mob hit at all.

Meanwhile, an elderly man reports his young Russian caregiver missing.

Catarella gets a much bigger role in this episode, a lot more character development. First, he's physically out at the quarry taking care of things. As he's searching for snails for dinner, he happens on an abandoned scooter and has the good sense to haul it to the station. As he's heading there with it, he bumps into Mimi and family on the way. And he's crucial to the hunt for the caregiver's kidnapper.

Spoilers in comments section.

Success! More Conversion.

Got around the latest crap with the video/audio non-sync for HI S8. YIPPEE!!!! Not quite so computer illiterate as I think myself to be.

Today's Catnip - Pixie Mega-Burps

Marching away on my arm while I'm trying to work on the computer. She has a very, very intense look when she's marching. This girl also purrs soooooo hard she sucks in tons of air, resulting in really loud burps. It's cute and funny unless she's right in your face. Then I have to hold my breath for a bit.

Funny Pet Joke

From the pest control guy yesterday, who has 2 dogs and took in a stray cat that's he's trying to place, but the little guy's worming his way into his heart (yay!)

What's the difference between the way dogs and cats think?

When you place a bowl of food in front of the dog, the dog looks up at you and thinks, 'You must be God.'

When you place a bowl of food in front of the cat, the cat looks up at you and thinks, 'I must be God.'

TV - Montalbano: Il Gioco delle Tre Carte

Best one to date! Great story, very interesting, somewhat mysterious. Lot more silly comedy, though still ok.

Two parallel stories, both involving beautiful women: Mimi's in charge of finding an embezzler, Tarantino, who ran off with over a million euros. He's convinced the thief isn't far off, because the wife is an unbelievably gorgeous, sexy creature, so he's got her under surveillance for 3 months so far.

But he just got another case, a clear-cut hit-and-run involving an elderly man who may have been drunk. He's ready to write it off. Montalbano, however, gets a tip from the elderly guy's partner that fishy things, like crank calls, had been happening prior to his death. His investigation leads Montalbano to a 20-year old murder of one of the guy's partners by his best friend. He'd been having an affair with the partner's wife, and didn't have an alibi. So he'd spent 20 yrs in jail, and had just been released.

After spending 5 mins at Mrs. Tarantino's flat, Montalbano figures out what's going on. He also figures out the second case, where the wife had put out a hit on her husband and framed her lover. The killer had gone into exile, and had just come back, blackmailing the elderly guy who had set up the hit (wouldn't pay so got killed), and the woman who had ordered it (paid up). The killer's own father killed him because he couldn't believe what a murdering monster he'd spawned.

Contractor Interviews - Week 1

So ends the first week of shopping for various people - pest, deck, landscaping, bathrooms. Found what seems to be a reasonable possibility for the deck - hope it works out. Got a great suggestion for a natural boulder wall instead of that cobbled stone I first wanted. MUCH cheaper, more natural looking and informal. Got a great idea for the circle around the pine outside that I can do myself. Took pics of P&L's nice bathroom. So far so good.

Got a couple names from Checkbook, and looking thru Angie's list, although sadly there aren't many choices in my area. Critical mass missing and all that. Got another referral from a neighbor.

Hanging in there, trying not to let the stress get to me this time. The additional sister issue doesn't help.

Overcast today, then steady rain since 6pm. Dampening the mood some more.

Speaking of Rants....Christian Bale, Anyone?

Sooo...I don't typically do this on my blog. Only reason it came up was after my own pointless rant, happened to see Hecklerspray's post. I like Christian Bale. I read the post. I listened to the recording. I laughed. And laughed. And laughed. And laughed some more. Holy moly mountain of crapola. That's SOME rant. And laughing some more now. Funny to see someone else snap and go completely off the red meter. Sad that it got captured and still spreading everywhere even a year later.

Hope he apologized (and more) to the poor sod he abused.

Rant - Fee Nondisclosure

Ok. I like getting things for free. I freely admit it (lame pun intended). But I don't mind paying for things I think are worth it. Like picking small local businesses, and I'm happy paying a little more for it.

So for a termite inspection, that's what I do. The first guy's real upfront on the phone with me, tells me he's so small he can't afford to come out just for a free look. Gives me a suggestion, sounds good. I go with that.

Second guy sounded like a medium-sized business, and the phone person schedules me after I say I just want someone to come take a look. No mention of money. I didn't ask. (Yeah, yeah, 'when you assume...'). Guy gets here this morning - excellent guy, by the book completely (a bit too much, but hey *shrug*), spends 40 minutes chatting and crawling around under the house. Great news: house, no problem! Bad news: deck, huge problem!

The problem comes at the end when he says, Great, that'll be $50. What? I don't mind paying it, but I would have liked to know up front, so I'm not surprised. That really ticks me off. He sees my surprise and displeasure. He also sees me consulting my notes, so he knows I'm not trying to weasel out of paying. I even tell him what Guy #1 told me. He offers to waive it, and he leaves.

But you know what? I just don't feel right about that. It's a small business, he took the time to come out and do 40 mins of work for me. I have to pay him. But I'm annoyed that I was surprised. I'm annoyed that I feel bad if I took the waiver. I'm just freaking annoyed to be put into this position. I'm just annoyed.

I know, I know, it's a very small thing. End of rant.

Today's Catnip - Kayla Plays Air Hockey

BWAHAHAHA.....am trying to type as Kayla right now is pouncing around my hands playing air hockey with my Calistoga water cap all around and under my computer (raised on a thick book). Getting some really good speed on it batting back and forth between her paws.

Oh, wait, now she's batting my pen around...it's in her mouth...okkkk....thrown off the table....hmmm.

Ahh. Aren't kitties cute.

Book Tag

Found this fun tag over at K&G Bookclub Blog Book Tag Post.

Here are the rules:

1) Grab the nearest book.
2) Open to page 56.
3) Find the 5th sentence.
4) Post the text of the next 2-5 sentences and these rules.
5) Pick the closest book (not the favorite, cool, or intellectual).

6) Tag 5 other bloggers!


















Pg 56, next 5 sentences after the first 5th sentence:

There was the world I lived in on Nepean Sea Road, and there was another world whose people came to wash our clothes, look at our electric meters, drive our cars, inhabit our nightmares. We lived in Bombay and never had much to do with Mumbai. Maharashtra to us was our servants, the banana lady downstairs, the textbooks we were force-fed in school. We had a term for them: ghatis - literally, the people from the ghats, or hills. It was also the word we used, generically, for 'servant.'

I tag:

1. Pamela4cats
2. Kaleidoscopic Life
3. TheKatzMeow

4. Notes From La Mancha
5. MizMinka

And everyone else!

Drumming Guy

From Daily Meanderings

I love this one. Got it in a $10 bin, probably done by a student, oil on canvas, and I got a frame from Micheal's with a 50% off coupon. The energy and motion of the scene is so appealing and kinetic. Sometimes, I can imagine being in front of a fire with all the other villagers, dancing, singing and chanting away. Other times I imagine an urban setting, street, with all the other drummers, I remember sometimes over 15 guys showing up, all with their different drums, near the train tracks, just sitting wherever on the pavement. Where else, depending on the mood? .....

House Stuff So Expensive

Finally got up some energy to tackle some of the home projects again, and the first contractor I called said he could make it over right away. 2 hours later, he's just managed to depress the hell out of me. Got a $3750 quote for a short boulder retaining wall for 175ft. Can't tell if that's good or bad. Have a couple others coming, so then I'll have some comps. He also estimated at least $25k to fix the deck. I know that's bullshit, because the other comp I've gotten was $7800. So I'm guessing that the boulder wall will be half his quote. That'd be nice.

That wasn't the really bad news. The really bad news was that he saw possible bug damage on the wood retaining wall and deck. So that's freaking me out. Scheduled a couple people to come out and take a look. Wonder how bad it'll be.

It's all ok. Take a deep breath.

Fun Night - Friend and Neighbors

Not only did I get all caught up on the financial stuff, managed to fit in some social activity. Spent happy hour with P, getting all caught up on the doings. She'd bought a new place like they'd wanted, and got to rent out the old one. Lots of remodeling, re-inspired me. Kid is 10, and getting tall. Broke the news about my Mozart's passing.

Cute little bar/restaurant! Completely out of place here, but oh, so welcome! Very stylish, chic, and very City-like. It's sooo not going to succeed here.

Then stopped by the neighbors' on impulse on the way home, since they were out on their driveway. L mentioned my Mozart's loss - she was so sweet, she teared up a little herself and gave me a huge hug. Agreed to hit the Fort Mason orchid show together. Nice.

Ikea Weekend Hell

OMFG. The area this Ikea's in is unbelievably traffic-planning-incompetent bad. It was a small town that just experienced this huge growth spurt which brought thousands of people into the town, but didn't bother figuring out how to move them all in and out through the streets. It's still not been fixed, even after a series of articles 10 years ago. The freeway merge is also unbelievable. I'm surprised more people don't get into accidents there.

Anyway. Decided to finally get the square shelving, didn't look too bad or shabby. Only catch: needed 3, and only 1 would fit into the car at a time. So...after the first reconnoitering to decide short or tall shelves, had to make a total of 4 trips at a half hour each way. Hubby and I were extremely snappy to each other, needless to say. Then I spent the next 5 hours assembling them all by myself, since Hubby was occupied by the Super Bowl.

But at the end, it was all done. And it looks great.