Cosmic Cat

Is anyone still in here? Hellooooooo.

2012-01-12T00:30:00.000-05:00

Just wondering if anyone still comes around. I confess to not keeping up with blogs very frequently these days. I sure as hell don't do much on my own blog.

Been slowly being my real non-anonymous self out there on the internets here and there. Including a yearlong foodie project which I will be posting on the low sodium blog on a roughly weekly basis. One new recipe (or an old one converted to low sodium) per week. That is not very exciting, but hopefully will be helpful to people who need to eat a little less salt and still want to eat well.

Happy New Year to all of you that are still out there reading this.

Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead (Sort of)

2011-11-08T23:32:00.002-05:00

Looks like Sunday alcohol sales will be legal in Georgia, at least in some jurisdictions that actually allowed a vote on the matter. Finally! But not everywhere. In my area, we were not given the opportunity to vote for or against (so I boycotted the election and didn't bother voting - I'm not going to go out of my way and wait in line to answer a one question ballot on SPLOST). I will reward forward thinking and good behavior by going out of my way to buy ALL my beer and wine in those jurisdictions that allow purchases on Sundays. Too bad my county didn't bother putting this on the ballot, but I won't have to drive very far to the nearest city or county that did.

My Obligatory "I'm Not Dead" Post

2011-10-23T16:49:00.004-04:00

Just thought I'd mention it, since I haven't posted in two months.

In the meantime, I had fun at the Dragon*Con Parade on Labor Day weekend...

...and Dragon*Con night at the Georgia Aquarium.

Georgia Tech football was really fun for six weeks, and then not fun at all the last two. And guess who we're playing for homecoming next week? *gulp* I can narrow it down for you - it is an ACC game and the opponent is undefeated. At least it is a night game and we'll all have a good time until kickoff. Wonder how long I can keep my buzz going?

While I'm being all productive on blog updates, I also put something up on that other blog I started (and have neglected for two months) as well.

I think PDM and I will probably do another mini-vacation around New Year's Day that is within 5-6 hours driving distance of Atlanta. Any suggestions? Would prefer to be near a state park or some other natural place where we can do a few winter day hikes. Last year we did northeastern Florida (Amelia Island) and had a good trip. The beaches were great (and deserted) but we would also consider going north to the mountains as well.

That's about all I've got for now.

The Photos Speak for Themselves

2011-08-25T00:49:00.003-04:00

These are all from our last full day on vacation and were taken in the subalpine region near Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park. Lets just say it was a terrific vacation. We probably crammed way too much into one week. Drove 1300 miles. Hiked 36 miles. Had some wildlife encounters (including multiple bears).

Dealing with that first week back to work is always the worst, although a light schedule and my fellow physicists made it easier this time. We had a lot of adventures. Great times!

It's Always Something...

2011-08-03T12:15:00.003-04:00

Now that I can breathe a sigh of relief about the national parks being open during my vacation, I found an even bigger problem with my travel plans: SNOW!!! Since the trip is days away, I started checking trail reports. I did not anticipate that nearly every trail I want to hike would still be covered by a thick layer of snow in August. Apparently the Pacific Northwest got record amounts of snowfall last winter, which has failed to melt in the usual timeframe. The higher elevation trails are either impassible, impossible to reach because the roads are also snowed under, or both. Lower elevation trails can be challenging due to fallen trees and high flow creeks and streams due to melting runoff. The net result will be that we have to modify where we visit and will probably not get to do nearly as much hiking as I had hoped for. PDM might prefer this arrangement, but I am disappointed that I won't get to walk through an alpine meadow filled with wildflowers and surrounded by beautiful mountains (unless I can find one that isn't under several feet of snow).

I am also a bit concerned that with far fewer places to spread out, the crowds might be much larger than what we'd prefer (we would rather not have ANY company on a trail other than plants and wildlife of the type that doesn't eat people). Still looking through my books and guides for creative alternatives, and hoping that our innkeepers will be able to point us toward paths less traveled, or maybe the park rangers will have some suggestions. But I am still astounded that my August vacation plans are all shot to hell because of snowpack. That just amazes me - and never crossed my mind when planning this trip.

High Anxiety

2011-07-28T23:49:00.003-04:00

So.... we are going on a vacation in about a week. The plan is to fly into Seattle, then split time between North Cascades National Park, Mt Rainier NP, and Olypmic NP. All of which will be CLOSED if the idiots in charge of our government can't get their shit straight by August 2. I am trying not to freak out, but every day that passes without any hope of an agreement sends my nervous system into overdrive. We have a lot of money tied up in a vacation that may need quite a bit of modification on the fly. NOT what I had in mind when I planned it. We had briefly considered returning to Canada to see the remote parts of Jasper, and now I am wishing that is what we decided to do. It would be far less uncertain. Yes, I know the general area we are traveling to is beautiful, and there should be some state parks and other alternatives, but really, we should be able to just look forward to the trip instead of getting that awful sinking feeling every time we think about it. I have enough stress in real life and on the job. I don't need vacation anxiety. I really don't. (And yes, I realize that far worse things will happen if an agreement is not reached than us not getting to do what we want on vacation. Just another reason why this needs to be resolved by level headed compromising! This is not rocket science - raise income AND cut spending. They need to do both. Duh.)

Brain Fog, and Other Excuses

2011-07-25T12:18:00.003-04:00

I haven't been around the blog much during the last few months. There has been other stuff going on. LOTS of other stuff. Here is my list of excuses:

1) Work - busy days, long hours. Frankly, I don't want to look at a computer once I get home some days. Been there, done that all day, too tired to care.

2) Summer is peak gardening season. This year I declared all out war on the monkey grass that we inherited when we bought this place. It might have seemed like a good idea in 1965, but monkey grass spreads all over the place, including our "lawn" which is mostly a collection of stuff that is NOT grass of any sort. So around Memorial Day weekend, I started ripping out huge beds of monkey grass and replacing it with nice plants that mostly stay where you put them. This coincided with the onslaught of perpetual heat waves, so I had to get up early to do this and it was still pure hell. I also upset a bunch of yellow jackets who had an underground nest in one of the monkey grass beds and got stung. They got blasted with Raid. I win.

3) Lots of doctor visits and tests. I've had some hearing loss and tinnitus in one ear since last October, and ignored it until April, when I started getting vertigo. That was scary and demanded immediate attention. The good news is that I don't have a brain tumor (they did an MRI to check). The bad news is that I have something called Meniere's Disease. They don't know what causes it and there is no cure. Awesome. Anyway, the primary method of managing symptoms is a low sodium diet (<2000mg, which is less than one teaspoon of table salt). Which brings me to #4...

4) Learning how to cook all over again. Almost everything in our standard repertoire of meals has too much sodium for me to eat. So we had to start nearly from scratch. Adapting some recipes (with mixed success) and making new stuff from some new low sodium cookbooks takes more time than we used to spend on meal prep. This diet also greatly limits where we can go out to eat, so we are obligated to do more cooking at home, and much more work is involved. Nearly everything we eat now is fresh, frozen, or dried. NOT canned, cured or processed. If we want sausage, we have to make it ourselves. Ditto for pizza - we have to make that from the dough up. Have to use dried beans, not canned (there goes spontaneity). It is really amazing how much sodium there is in EVERYTHING. I have become quite the label reader. Even cheese is a problem! Bacon, sausage, pickles, olives, cheese, salty snacks, canned goods, soups (unless homemade), fast foods (including my beloved chick-fil-A), breads, condiments, soy sauce, and most common snack foods - all on the bad list.

5) Not feeling well - vertigo takes it out of you. Ditto for stress and migraine headaches. Some days I come home and go straight to bed. Most of my symptoms have improved with the low sodium diet (the hearing loss seems permanent), and I am losing weight and feel better overall. But I still need to crash about once a week due to whatever.

6) Other interests - been doing some photography stuff (finally getting my last vacation shots - like the one with this post - processed and posted on Flickr), reading (not as much as I would like), catching up on our backlog of DVR stuff, vacation planning (happening soon, and we are not ready yet), and I've already mentioned the garden projects.

7) Hanging out other places on the internet - I started a separate blog about the new low sodium lifestyle, and also joined Google+ (both as my very own non-anonymous self). So those are dividing my attention. If any of you are on Google+ (other than the two of you I already know about and have in my circles) let me know in comments or email me - I am fermicat at both gmail and yahoo.

8) This is not really an excuse for not blogging, and maybe it is a result of the valium I have to take to "suppress my central nervous system" in an attempt to calm down the vertigo, but I am turning into a complete airhead. Absent minded doesn't even begin to describe some of the stuff I do now. It is almost comical. But also kind of sad. I used to be fairly sharp. Now... not so much. And kind of clutzy as well. Running into walls, falling UP stairs, etc. Not fun, and a bit embarrassing (and bruise-inducing).

So... in a nutshell: work, monkey grass, medical tests, learning to cook from scratch, feeling crappy, doing other stuff, being myself on the internet for a change, and brain fog are my excuses for not doing much blogging. How about you?

Photo info: A flock of seagulls crosses the rising sun at the beach. Amelia Island, Florida. Aperture f/8, 1/400 sec exposure, 55mm focal length. January 3, 2011

Freedom Is A Light For Which Many Men Have Died In Darkness

2011-07-04T10:40:00.003-04:00

Have a happy and safe Independence Day.

Take some time out to remember the many souls who sacrificed and died to make our country free.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Washington Square (Philadelphia) honors those who died in the Revolutionary War. The tomb itself is inscribed with: "Beneath this stone rests a soldier of Washington's army who died to give you liberty."

This square was used as a mass grave on many occasions beginning in 1706 and continuing through the Yellow Fever epidemic of 1793. Paupers, soldiers, common citizens and criminals all lie co-mingled underneath the square. The area was cleaned up and named for George Washington in 1825. In 1956, one soldier was disinterred and placed in the memorial tomb to represent all. The statue, tomb, and memorial were erected to honor both George Washington and the unknown soldier.

An excellent overview of the history of Washington Square can be found here.

I Dare You To Watch This and NOT Smile

2011-06-21T12:42:00.004-04:00

I can't explain it, but watching this made me grin like a madwoman. Charming!

P.S. Happy Summer!!

Quick Hits

2011-05-28T14:44:00.005-04:00

A dogwood tree fell in our yard during Thursday evening's storms. Not a big deal since it didn't hit anything and isn't in the way. It seems almost a shame to have to remove it -- the cats think it is their personal feline jungle gym. They are all over it.

I've decided that planning our vacations is nearly as much fun as actually going on them. It finally got slow at work the past two days so I started working on our August plans. We're going to Washington state to see North Cascades, Olympic, and Mt. Rainier national parks. And since we're flying into Seattle, I think we'll have to make time to see the Science Fiction Museum just because.

Work is still kicking my ass, but in spite of that I am glad that they switched me to the Midtown location. Change is good. Still covering the "gritty downtown location" two days a week. Also still forced to "share" my Midtown office with a physician two of my three days there. And by "share", my employers mean when she is there I don't get to use it. Not fun.

So why haven't I been around here more? Ironically, my near constant access to the internet provided by my smart phone is the reason that I haven't been around very much. Now that I don't need a computer to read my email and get directions and stuff, I have less of a reason to get on the internet. I'm too busy to do it at work any more and don't really want to sit behind a computer at home since I spend so much time staring at a screen at work.

Tomorrow is my birthday. Forty five sure feels like halfway (or -gulp- more than half way) to something. Anyway, I decided to get myself a present: I'm hiring a housekeeper. I suck at cleaning, don't do it often enough and don't like it. I am more than happy to pay someone else to do it. So that's the plan. We've talked about hiring people to do the yard work also, but I am on the fence about that. I don't dislike yard work. I just don't like doing it when it is hot (kind of a problem when you live in Atlanta - it is hot all the dang time). I'd rather mow the lawn than vacuum any day, even if it is 95F and 95% humidity.

Oh Hai

2011-05-15T11:31:00.000-04:00

Soooooo, whatcha been up to?

Merlin the Mighty

2011-04-02T12:03:00.003-04:00

Cats are well known for leaving "gifts" of prey at their owners' doorstep. My cats are no exception, which is why it is wise to look down before leaving the house barefoot unless you really enjoy having chipmunk intestine between your toes. Count me out.

Today, Merlin brought us a gift of his own, but I'm not sure he really gets the concept. He was quite proud of his catch. And as usual in our cat household, the prey he was in the process of eating wasn't quite dead yet. Merlin ate the wings first. A bird, you ask? Sadly, no. The noble creature that Merlin bagged was... a butterfly. Which he carried to our doorstep, meowed until we opened the door, and then ate in front of us. He probably didn't understand why we were laughing at him.

Alive and Kicking

2011-03-27T19:16:00.003-04:00

'Been a while. Figured I should let people know I am still alive (PDM and the cats are all OK as well - I know LL must have been worried sick). I haven't been posting since my work assignment changed a month ago*. When I feel like posting, I don't have time. When I have time, I don't feel like posting. Thus my month of silence.

I don't really feel much like posting right now, so I will leave you with the little blurb below and this photo of the morning sky over the north Georgia mountains, where PDM and I had a short getaway last weekend. We stayed in a cottage at a state park, and this was the view from our back porch. Not bad, eh?

*Still covering the gritty downtown location, but now I spend the other three days at the upscale midtown location. I was feeling burned out at the main location, so I am generally happy that they switched me to new horizons. Traffic is more of a hassle since I am going into the heart of Atlanta every day, but on the plus side my lunch choices have improved dramatically. You gotta look at the positive. This is a good thing long term, but in the short term there is a situation that makes this change very challenging and sometimes irritating. It should smooth out in a few months (fingers crossed). Maybe I won't be quite so damn busy after that. One can always hope.

Hammock Time

2011-02-27T19:09:00.003-05:00

This is the view from our hammock. Rather awesome, no?

Atlanta had such great weekend weather*, I brought the hammock out of storage early and had some well deserved time to rest in it after a whole lot of yard work. It was our annual "chop down the old monkey grass" weekend. Like I always say, if it has "monkey" in the title, it is bound to give you trouble. We also did a bunch of other chores that you don't want to hear about.

Now the smell of charcoal smoke and jerk pork is filling the evening air. I am sipping wine and catching up on internet stuff while my husband cooks. Hope your weekend was equally productive and enjoyable. Smells like it is time to eat - gotta go!

*It isn't all wine and pork aroma. We are paying dearly for the early spring with a very high pollen count - especially considering it is only February. At least we are warm and comfortable while we sneeze and rub our eyes.

What a pain...

2011-02-20T19:19:00.004-05:00

I spent eight hours today moving my CDs and assorted booklets and cover art from jewel cases to plastic sleeves. Sadly, I did not even come close to finishing the job. I am just glad that all the music we have purchased over the last several years is digital and not still sitting in my "to do" pile. I've got several hours to go before I can box up the jewel cases for the recycler. Some other time... not tonight.

Parts of my 2011 decluttering effort have been more painful than others. Today moved straight to the top of that list. Apparently, I am too old to spend eight hours sitting cross legged on the floor. *sigh* At least I have a nice desk to sit at while I complain about my lower back pain on my blog. And a good chair with lumbar support that is doing more to soothe my back than that useless painkiller I took an hour ago.

Mac Desk 2.0

2011-02-13T13:03:00.003-05:00

Did some more redecorating. This time we tackled the desk in our den that houses the "fun computer". I use the Mac for all my photography stuff, and it is our digital juke box for the house. We outgrew the old desk years ago when we got the big monitor but we kept limping along with it. Since this is in our den, I wanted real furniture that looks nice. This desk fit the bill. The CPU is now hidden in the closet, but is easily accessible through the curtain. Ditto for the accessories and supplies. Big improvement!

AFTER:

BEFORE:

Crichton Kitteh?

2011-02-11T14:46:00.003-05:00

This one's for my Farscape friends. Don't know what I'm talking about? Watch, and learn. HIGHLY recommended.

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Merlin

2011-02-04T11:42:00.001-05:00

Merlin, formerly known as "New Cat", has settled in with us nicely. He and Silvio have become partners in crime. The girls are relieved that they keep each other occupied and out of their fur. I'm glad we took him in. He's a good cat.

Cat and Mouse

2011-01-28T11:24:00.001-05:00

Something's been off this year. Finally figured out what it is.

Home Office: After & Before

2011-01-26T07:30:00.003-05:00

We spent Sunday overhauling the home office. Threw away or recycled a ton of stuff and created a much nicer space to work in. Next up: the Mac desk in our den.

Here is what it looked like before (err, actually "during" since you can see some parts of the new desk on the floor in the foreground and the area to the left of the old desk has been cleaned):

Slacker Cat

2011-01-20T23:29:00.002-05:00

PDM says I should rename this blog "Slacker Cat" because of my lack of updates. It is true that I am ignoring my blog (and many others), but not because I am a slacker. I've been Getting Shit Done at home and that is a very good thing. It finally dawned on me after five years in this house that it is not gonna decorate itself. I gave it plenty of chances. So, for whatever reason, right after I got back from the New Years vacation, I got obsessed with decluttering and getting all the crap outta here. I'm off to a great start. Dropped off eight huge shopping bags of schtuff at Goodwill this very afternoon. Recycled a ton of paper/cardboard. Freed up a lot of shelf and closet space. And I am only getting started.

No more living like a grad student. Time to be a grown up. I'm ditching the particle board and getting some real furniture. Gonna hang some ART on the walls - probably lots of my own photos, enlarged and framed. I've got 600 CD sleeves on the way so I can finally get rid of all those stupid jewel cases. I donated all my VHS movies. If it doesn't fit or hasn't been worn in several years, it is outta here. If I am keeping it, it is going to be packed away in an orderly fashion.

Making a list of home projects to be crossed off in 2011. Some are easily accompished - like today's project of getting rid of those stupid bathtub "safety" decals that have mostly disintegrated and have been ugly germ traps for years. Done! Other low-hanging fruit includes some painting (although that includes some drywall repair that might not be trivial). Every one of our interior doors needs to be replaced.

So sorry about the blog neglect, but it feels so good to be getting so much done at home. I didn't check my feed reader on vacation 12/30 - 1/4, and then I was busy and couldn't do it, and then realized last week that I didn't really miss most of it. So today I checked on my friends and deleted the rest. Very similar to the other decluttering I've been engaged in!

Freezing Fog?

2011-01-10T23:18:00.000-05:00

It's in the forecast. Can't wait. This has been a really weird week so far.

Project 365

2011-01-08T21:01:00.003-05:00

I took at least one photograph every day in 2010 as a project to get to know my new DSLR camera. [Except on May 30, when I was busy with party preparations and then the actual party and totally forgot about Project 365 so I didn't take any photos until it was after midnight and too late to fix, dammit.] The project helped me develop as a photographer and I did get to know what all the buttons and knobs on the camera do. I also was driven to learn some new Photoshop techniques to keep things interesting and fresh. I'd say Project 365 was a success!

At approximately one photo per second, it will take six minutes of your time if you wish to watch the Project 365 slideshow all the way through (I think you can also manually click through them faster or slower if you wish). Warning: contains CATS. Also rocks, trees, fungus, bugs, flowers, pollen, astronomical objects, gastronomical objects (i.e. "food"), Tech stuff, vacation photos, abstract artsy shots, more cats, great photos, good photos, a few bad photos that I tried to rescue, and even a piece or two of me.

Project 365 involved a pretty big commitment, so I won't be repeating it in 2011. Hopefully the photography habit that I nurtured this past year will stick around and quality will now take the place of quantity. I remain interested in developing new digital post processing skills and making the most out of what I capture. I'll admit that taking a few days off photography has been refreshing. There will always be inspiration and I plan to take advantage of what I've learned. [Perhaps in a couple of days, when "snowmegeddon" arrives. Yes, Atlanta is due for some sort of big "snow event". Be afraid. Be very afraid.]

Happy 2011

2011-01-01T00:01:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year from warm and sunny Florida. PDM and I are down here on mini-vacation (staying not quite a week). Having a wonderful time biking, hiking, eating, drinking. Wish you were here. :-)

Artoo!

2010-12-29T12:06:00.001-05:00

Hello. My name is Fermicat. I'm 44 years old, and rockin' my new Star Wars phone. Too nerdy? I don't care. Santa brought me the Motorola DROID R2-D2 and I love it. I even got a clear cover so the R2-D2 design on the back surface remains visible.

I developed an obsession with The Empire Strikes Back when I was 14 and apparently never quite got over it. Fast forward thirty years. When I saw that there was an R2-D2 version of the DROID 2, that finally settled the question of which smart phone to go with.

It is almost unbelievable what these phones will do. (Yes, it is my first smart phone. Can you tell?) I've had a blast downloading apps. Compass? Check. GPS tool? Check. Route tracker with offline topo maps? Check. Interactive sky map? Check. Scientific calculator? Check. Barcode scanner? Check. Pandora? Check. Forum reading app? Check. IMDB, movies, sports tap, shazam, twitter, Earth, photoshop, NPR news widget, traffic reporter, trip advisor, navigator? Checkcheckcheck... Hell, I even downloaded a lightsaber. And with a little luck, I could probably shut down all the garbage mashers on the detention level. That'll come in handy if I ever need to escape the Death Star.

The Force will be with me, always. Or at least until my contract runs out.

Merry, Merry!

2010-12-24T19:10:00.001-05:00

Happy Christmas from Fermi and her cats. PDM, too.

Night Owls Rejoice!

2010-12-20T15:18:00.004-05:00

A total lunar eclipse ushers in the winter solstice tonight. Will be visible throughout USA, although a bit on the late side for us east coast people. Main part of the show starts at 2:40am EST, maximum of eclipse 3:17am EST (blood red moon! cool!), end of totality 3:53am EST. Always a good show.

Here is a bad photo of the February 20, 2008 eclipse (with Regulus and Saturn as part of the dance) I shot with my old point-n-shoot camera hand held behind my binoculars:

It is tempting to stay up tonight and try again with the DSLR. Or maybe just set my alarm to catch the peak. Hmmmmm.

No cookies for you.

2010-12-19T23:12:00.004-05:00

Trader Joe's finally let me down. No Candy Cane Joe Joes? No Dark Chocolate Stars? For whatever reason, TJ's doesn't have my favorite holiday cookies this year. Bah, humbug! That just ain't right.

Almost Forgot

2010-12-17T12:08:00.001-05:00

It's Friday again. Merry Weekend!

Time/Money

2010-12-14T23:36:00.004-05:00

The usual extent of my do-gooding is to give away money. We enjoy supporting various causes that we care about and think are worthwhile. We make it a point to do this regularly. It is satisfying to some extent, but kind of feels like a cop out sometimes. It's easy for us to give away money. We are fortunate to have a very comfortable surplus. It is not so easy to give away your time, so I usually don't.

But for some reason when the latest opportunity arose (a charitable activity sponsored by my department at work), I decided to give my usual amount of money but also volunteered to do a share of the actual work involved to make things happen. I've gotta say - even though this is a very busy time of year and I had to carve out a couple of my evenings to work on the thing, it was a good experience and I enjoyed doing it. The doing was a bit more satisfying than the donating. I think I might try a bit more of both in the coming year.

It's a boy!

2010-12-06T20:25:00.002-05:00

Good thing we haven't named New Cat yet, 'cuz it turns out he's a neutered male. Oops. Sorry, New Cat. Poor guy almost got tagged with a girlie name. Now we're back to the drawing board.

Crazy Cat Lady?

2010-12-03T00:05:00.000-05:00

This little sweetheart got lost and wandered into our yard weekend before last. Lucky break for her. She is/was obviously somebody's housecat. Totally sweet and tame, very cuddly, very healthy, very hungry, and apparently homeless. And it seems like no one is really looking for her. We've checked. Thoroughly. No signs posted, no collar, no microchip, no want ads, no sign of anyone who cares. If one of my cats turned up missing, I'd make sure everyone within a mile radius knew about it.

So it is what it is. And we have another cat. *sigh* But I am NOT a crazy cat lady. I swear. Perfectly normal, in spite of the four and a half cats.

So...... what should we name her? We can't call her "new cat" forever.

To Hell With Georgia!

2010-11-22T20:32:00.003-05:00

It's rivalry week. Get yer hate on!

Yes, LL, this means I'll be rooting for Boise State next September, because my two favorite teams are GEORGIA TECH and WHOEVER IS PLAYING GEORGIA.

"What's the good word?"

TO HELL WITH GEORGIA!

"How 'bout them dawgs?"

PISS ON 'EM.

Carry on.

Lap Fungus

2010-11-19T16:23:00.002-05:00

Maybe I should see a doctor about this strange growth on my legs.

Only the good stuff.

2010-11-14T23:45:00.003-05:00

Two good things about the game this weekend:

1) A USAF C-17 flyover.

2) Honoring the REAL 1990 National Championship team. The one that had zero losses and didn't need five downs and a questionable call to get their 11-0-1 record. No other team was undefeated that year. I was there for the season, and was in the stands at the Citrus Bowl. That 1990 team rocked! They were honored at halftime and Coach Bobby Ross addressed the crowd. Hmmmm, maybe we should have had him in the locker room firing up the 2010 team.

Predictions - Nowhere to go but up.

2010-11-13T00:29:00.001-05:00

I got one lousy game right last week (thank you Stanford). Can't get much worse, so maybe things will be better this time around.

Upset specials: once again, my very own Yellow Jackets are underdogs at home against ThugU. We owe them one, and payback is a bitch. Jackets pull off the "upset" in a battle of the untested QBs. Not sure why South Carolina is an underdog against an awful Florida team, but I think Spurrier has this one covered.

Here's the week's predictions (underdogs first with pt spread, and home team is in CAPS).

GT(+4) 28, Miami 24 - Tevin Washington gets it done. GO JACKETS!!! Plus we honor the 1990 National Champion team (the only one that was UNDEFEATED and didn't need a 5th down to win a game)

South Carolina(+7) 24, FLORIDA 21 - not sure it will even be this close, but whatever.

NORTH CAROLINA(+3.5) 17, Virginia Tech 31 - NC has let me down for the last time. Think you can win? Prove it. Then I might pick ya next week.

TEXAS(+6.5) 21, Okla State 35 - don't really care, but had to pick something

Georgia(+8.5) 21, AUBURN 24 - Hate Georgia, and Auburn has had a week of distractions, but I still don't see the upset happening unless something really weird occurs. Hope I'm right!!!

ND(+4) 10, Utah 21 - don't like ND, and don't think they are very good this year.

Fun in a Leaf Pile

2010-11-12T06:51:00.000-05:00

Romeo makes a bed in a pile o' leaves last Saturday. He knows how to have a good time, and take comfort wherever it presents.

RIP Friday Nights

2010-11-10T22:38:00.004-05:00

For the third time in less than three years, our current Friday night hangout has closed its doors forever. Is it us?

Two years ago our regular many-nights-a-week hangout died a sudden death.

I looked for, and didn't find, a post about killing our second choice bar. It died just about a year ago.

And now, a third one is toast.

I don't know what to think. Or what to do on Friday nights. Maybe, in the interests of not causing another small businesses to fail, we should start a new tradition of not patronizing the same business every week.

It's weird. What do you think?

And now, a cat.

2010-11-05T11:47:00.000-04:00

Been awhile. Was overdue.

Predictions Come Early This Week

2010-11-03T23:25:00.004-04:00

My team plays on Thursday, so the predictions had to be nailed down early this week. Full disclosure: I am a Georgia Tech homer and I don't bet against my team. That frequently comes back to haunt me, because I have BAD sports mojo. Someone once spotted me 50 points and my team lost 51-0. No kidding.

Which brings me to this week's upset specials. First up - my very own Yellow Jackets. We're due for a breakout game, and I am hoping we get it this week, in spite of being 15 point underdogs and not having put together four complete quarters of kick-ass ball so far this season, even though we are eight games in. My other upset entree is NCState over Clemson. I've seen both of those teams play in person and I think NCState is the better of the two.

So here goes:

The Real Tech(+15) 31, FAKE TECH 28 - probably just wishful thinking on my part, but I hope the Ramblin' Wreck waxes the Hokies, who are still complaining about our blocking techniques a year after we beat them in 2009. Man up, Turkeys. And LOSE!!!

NC State(+4) 28, CLEMSON 24 - Seen 'em both, and this is my verdict.

North Carolina(+10) 17, FSU 28 - NC let me down last week, so eff 'em. FSU takes care of business.

Arkansas(+3) 14, SOUTH CAROLINA 21 - SEC, whatever. Don't really care.

LSU(+6.5) 21, Alabama 24 - Les Miles pulls some new trick out of his ass, but Saban's team finds a way to win in spite of Miles' deal with the devil.

Arizona(+7.5) 24, STANFORD 35 - Go Nerds!!! Trees rule!

Bad Choices

2010-11-02T07:59:00.000-04:00

I'm one of those unenthusiastic voters this year. Voted anyway, renewing my license to complain about the results. The top of the ticket (governor) was particularly unexciting. It was like going to a restaurant and being offered a choice between a vomit milkshake, a turd sammich, or rancid sewer scum souffle. *sigh*

I also didn't appreciate the confusing wording of some of the ballot questions. I ended up voting NO on one of them simply because I couldn't figure out what it meant, and that was after reading it carefully about ten times.

At least today signals the end of the incessant robocalls, endless mailers, and idiotic attack ads. Or maybe not. The Georgia governor's race is likely to require a runoff, insuring that the madness continues for another month. Lovely. Too bad we'll still have the same bad choices on the menu, and they won't smell any better on November 30.

Happy Halloween!

2010-10-31T19:47:00.001-04:00

Dusting off my old halloween cat collage, enjoy:

Can't lose, right?

2010-10-30T08:14:00.000-04:00

My team cannot lose this weekend (due to an open date), but I've still made some of my usual lousy predictions. I didn't publish last week's due to travel - vacation, followed by a road trip to Clemson - but I did about like usual.

Upset specials: Georgia over Florida (still can't understand why UGA is the underdog when UF clearly sucks this year, but whatever...) and Wake Forest over Maryland. UM's record looks good until you realize they haven't really played anyone yet.

Home team is in CAPS and underdog is listed first with (+pt spread).

Mich St(+4.5) 21, IOWA 28 - Iowa is simply the better team

Georgia(+1.5) 17, Florida (at Jax) 14 - would love to see the Dawgs go down, but not counting on it

Missouri(+6) 20, NEBRASKA 21 - Mizzou is good, but I see Nebraska winning a close one

USC(+7) 20, Oregon 35 - Kiffin gets waxed

Duke(+14.5) 14, NAVY 31 - wasn't sure about the Middies beating the spread, but I am thinking they will

Wake Forest(+7.5) 24, MARYLAND 21 - the Demon Deacons will get it done

Beer O'Clock needs to come early today...

2010-10-29T14:28:00.004-04:00

...because this is what work has been like all day, and it just keeps getting worse:

Big Ol' Jet Airliner

2010-10-17T14:52:00.004-04:00

No, I'm not going to a Steve Miller concert. But I am going to California tonight for a visit with my sister in Encinitas. Mom's coming too. As usual, it is taking me hours to get my sh*t together and pack a bag.

I'm not taking PDM, which means only one thing for him: Booze and Hookers!!! He talks a big game, but in reality it will be more like "Beers and Burrito de Puerco!"

Football Picks - Can I Go 4-2 Again?

2010-10-16T00:09:00.002-04:00

Once again, I was 4-2 straight up last week (but only 2-4 against the spread). I do get to claim bragging points for being one of the few to predict the 'Bammer upset, which made me feel all smart and stuff, and for once my team beat the spread.

This week's upset specials are UVA over UNC, who hasn't won in Charlottesville since I was in high school, and Okie State over Texas Tech just because. UNC may be due, but I ain't seein' it this year. Then again, I've been wrong before (at least two times per week).

Middle Tenn State(+20) 10, GEORGIA TECH 35 - not sure about the 20-pt spread but hope springs eternal and we need a big win before the toughest part of our schedule kicks in next week

VIRGINIA(+6.5) 21, North Carolina 20 - may be wishful thinking, but I'd like to see the 'Hoos get a win

Southern Methodist(+4) 10, NAVY 28 - got a soft spot for Coach Johnson's old team

Texas(+8) 20, NEBRASKA 42 - big time revenge game that'll have people literally seeing red

MICHIGAN(+3) 17, Iowa 28 - Ricky will rock this game and RichRod will be unhappy

Oklahoma State(+3) 35, TEXAS TECH 31 - for no particular reason at all

There are stars in the Southern sky

2010-10-15T06:51:00.000-04:00

We'll be under those stars tonight for the Eagles in concert at Piedmont Park. Hope they play this song.

PDM is doing it the hard way.

2010-10-13T17:33:00.000-04:00

Apparently all you need to improve your instructor ratings is a nice tat. On the other hand, maybe that only works for chicks...

Not so fast there, Adams...

2010-10-12T14:13:00.003-04:00

In the waning days of his eight years as our governor, Sonny has finally said something I agree with. Will wonders never cease?

Given our state's budget shortfalls and cuts in education, why on earth should UGA start an engineering program that directly competes with Georgia Tech's College of Engineering? Tech is consistently ranked among the top five engineering programs in the nation. If the state needs to produce more engineers, existing programs could be expanded to serve more students for far less cost than creating one from scratch.

Football Predictions - No Guts, No Glory

2010-10-09T00:23:00.001-04:00

OK, so back to 4-2 straight up and 3-3 against the spread last week. My upset special did not happen, and Georgia let me down (not really, I just picked them to allow my mojo to help them lose). And Tech didn't beat the spread, being lucky to get out with a win. That was then, this is now.

This week's "no guts, no glory" upset prediction is South Carolina over Alabama. Sure, it isn't likely to happen. Probably no one will beat Alabama this season. But if ever there was a chance, I think it is this weekend. SC 21, Bammer 20

Everything else:

Clemson(+2.5) 24, UNC 21 - another upset pick, probably more likely than Bama losing

Virginny(+8) 17, GT 28 - love that koolaid, plus it is Homecoming and we are due to lay the hammer down on someone.

Tennessee(+8.5) 20, UGA 24 - Tempting to pick UT for the upset, but Georgia has their back against the wall and is playing at home. Plus, I hope my bad mojo has its usual effect.

Florida State(+7) 14, MIAMI 28 - Sure, I want FSU to win, but I will be shocked if I am wrong with this pick.

Southern Cal(+7) 10, STANFORD 28 - Go Trees!

Mox

2010-10-08T00:20:00.001-04:00

It is Friday, so here is Moxy. She is rooting for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Atlanta Braves this weekend.

Go Jackets! Go Braves!

A Fun October? Signs Point to YES.

2010-10-05T19:57:00.003-04:00

Two home games, both starting at the respectable hour of 3:30pm. One away game (time unknown) coupled with a weekend visit with PDM's brother. A week off work in between games. A trip to visit my sister in the San Diego area during that week (paid for with frequent flyer miles rather than actual money). New stuff (good stuff!) to watch on the tube. Comfortable temps, but without the yard making heavy demands for maintenance yet. I'm thinking October could be a lot of fun.

The Persistence of Scent Memory

2010-10-04T12:46:00.000-04:00

I accidentally disturbed a very large leaf footed bug yesterday while doing some weeding and I cannot get the memory of the odor it released out of my head. This is worse than having some cheesy 70s song stuck in the brain - at least in the musical case you can replace the stuck song with another less obnoxious one. The scent is probably not how you are imaging it if you haven't run into one of these. Think of a sweet, yet rancid, strong, cloying scent and you are on the right track. Kind of like a vase of decayed gardenia or a rancid almond. A note of something almost pleasant, twisted and overpowered by an "offness" that is hard to describe. A very odd odor.

Anyway, that scent has been stuck in my olfactory memory all day. Lucky me.

Moderately Bad Football Picks?

2010-10-02T09:42:00.002-04:00

I've gone 4-2 for the last two weeks now, so I can't say my picks are *really* bad. Last week I was also 4-2 against the spread, which is my best week yet. The name change on this post has probably doomed this week's picks to utter failure, because that's the way my sports mojo works.

My upset pick of the week is NC State over VT, 21-17. NCSU is the real deal -- I saw it in person last Saturday.

I've got everyone else winning and covering:

WAKE FOREST(+10) 10, GT 21 - I think the actual spread may be much higher, but lets not get crazy and throw in my bad mojo.

Florida(+9) 13, ALABAMA 24 - I don't think Floridy has any chance this year.

CLEMSON(+3) 20, Miami 28 - this one was tough. I want Clemson to win and have seen them play well, but I haven't yet seen them play good and tough for all four quarters. If Clemson can't bring it for the entire game, Miami will take this one even with Jacory "Interception Man" Harris doing his usual stuff to help the Clemson defense.

COLORADO(+4) 17, Georgia 31 - another tough one for a different reason. I don't like either of these teams. You all know how I feel about UGA. You may not know that Colorado has been spouting off lately about how they were the "consensus national champs" in 1990. Twenty years later they still manage to piss me off (and apparently do not understand what the word "consensus" means). How about the fact that they had one loss, won another game because the refs gave them a fifth down, and won their bowl game due to a bad call against ND? Also, the Coaches Poll begs to differ! Georgia Tech went undefeated in 1990. The Buffs can kiss my grits. Too bad someone has to win this week's match up, but since Colorado is awful and Georgie's back is against the wall I am going with the stupid Dawgs on this one. Blech.

Texas(+4) 17, Oklahoma 24 - I don't really care who wins this one, but Oklahoma is playing much better football than Texas so I went with the favorite.

Goooooooooooo Jackets! Sting 'em!

Just for Dave: POUNCE!!

2010-10-01T00:10:00.005-04:00

Dave wondered about the absence of action in my cat photos last week, so this one is dedicated to him:

That is genuine motion blur on the cat. I did not doctor it up in photoshop.

For the record, Silvio did catch the chipmunk he pounced on. Then let it go and caught it again. And again. And again (FUN!). The game finally stopped when Zima showed up and ate it. And then promptly threw it up.

I won't even go in to how Zima chewed one of its legs off before it was dead and I had to get PDM to come out and humanely kill it. Because that part of cat ownership really sucks.

The Strange "Logic" of Health Insurance

2010-09-28T23:20:00.003-04:00

I recently had a cancer scare. It's OK, it didn't turn out to be cancer (as far as they can tell), but we had a tense couple of weeks until we found that out. I thought all that was behind me until I received the bill. Yes, I have the best (read "most expensive") health insurance that I can get through my employer, but they use pretzel logic and who knows what else to determine what they'll actually pay for.

In my case, I found a lump in my breast. Big lump. Painful. Obvious. So I went to the breast imaging center to have it checked out like you're supposed to do. My insurance paid for the diagnostic mammogram, which didn't detect the big obvious lump. They made me pay for the ultrasound exam that did actually verify that I had a solid mass. O-kaaaaayyyy, whatever.

Standard procedure in my case called for a core breast biopsy. Again, my insurer kinda sorta stepped up to the plate. They paid for everything involved with the actual procedure involved to obtain the necessary tissue samples from the breast lump. And then proceeded to charge me for the full cost of the pathology test. The whole point of the procedure was to obtain tumor samples to test for cancer, and they decide to pay for the extraction of the tissue but not the test?!? That makes NO SENSE at all. WTF? Do they not realize that paying for cancer treatment would FAR surpass the cost of paying for an early detection biopsy? Apparently they do not give a crap.

It wasn't all that much money out of pocket, but the principle of the thing bothers me. If something serious happens, just how much would they really pay for? Makes me wonder.

Aftermath

2010-09-26T23:28:00.002-04:00

Respecting the 24-hour rule, I can now say a few things about the game on Saturday. Apparently, my team just isn't all that good. I didn't see much to encourage me on Saturday. Usually, I can find a bright side. Not so much this time. It is possible we made our opponent look better than they are. They looked very good to me.

I cannot remember EVER being that hot during a football game. Maybe you don't notice when you are winning, and we usually don't drop a home game in September. At any rate, the Atlanta area set a heat record for 9/25 and I believe it. We were in the sun until the middle of the second half, sweating our asses off. The concession stands in our area ran out of bottled water around halftime. The EMTs had their hands full with dozens of cases of heat exhaustion. I got a raccoon sunburn on my face (everywhere except where my sunglasses covered). We were behind the entire game and it was miserable. The only bright spot was the almost comeback when we brought it within 3, but that didn't last.

But you know, that was last week and tomorrow is another day. We've got another game on Saturday. PDM and I will cook another awesome meal, and have people over, and hopefully our team will get it together and kick some butt! And no matter what happens, we will enjoy this season of college football. I'm not a Tech fan because they win. It is in my blood. They are my team, no matter what.

How Silvio Spends His Friday Nights

2010-09-24T12:17:00.000-04:00

Crashed out on the couch.

Even More Bad Football Picks

2010-09-23T22:54:00.003-04:00

Last week was my best yet. 4-2 straight up and 3-3 against the spread. Maybe I'll still trend up this week.

As per usual, underdogs listed first with spread and home teams are in CAPS.

Virginia Tech(+2) 21, BOSTON COLLEGE 17 - easy money, if I actually wagered any

North Carolina State(+9) 28, GEORGIA TECH 38 - Go Jackets!!! Win! Cover!

Wake Forest(+19) 21, FSU 45 - yes, I think F$U will crush Weak Florist like a bug

ARKANSAS(+1) 24, Alabama 35 - easiest decision ever

South Carolina(+1) 24, AUBURN 21 - why not?

NOTRE DAME(+1) 14, Stanford 17 - Trees rule.

I'll be at the Tech game at noon gettin' another weird sunburn. Last home game my cleavage got burned. Among other things. Dang. I think I will be more careful with the sunblock this time. And maybe wear a hat.

Still Behind the Tech Curve

2010-09-21T07:04:00.000-04:00

Apparently, RSS feed readers are passe. This was news to me. I still check my trusty feed reader many times daily. Unfortunately, my RSS aggregator of choice is Bloglines, and they are getting out of the RSS feed business. They seem to think that people don't need RSS readers now that they have Facebook and Twitter. I disagree. Which means that I need to find a new RSS service to indulge my several-times-a-day habit.

Any recommendations? The obvious choice would be Google Reader. I'm just not sure I want to turn over yet another piece of my online self to the Google monster. They already know far too much about me. Are there any other decent feed readers out there? I really liked the Bloglines user interface, and would prefer something similar.

More Really Bad Football Picks

2010-09-17T22:32:00.000-04:00

Last week's bloodbath: 3-3, and 1-5 against the spread. Only marginally better than my first week (thank you very little, GT).

This week's strategy: WAG

GEORGIA(+2.5) 30, Arkansas 24

Brigham Young(+8) 24, FSU 35

TENN(+15) 17, Florida 28

Clemson(+6) 14, AUBURN 21

TEXAS TECH(+7.5) 31, Texas 28

Maryland(+13) 10, WEST VA 24

First team listed is underdog, home team in CAPS. I'm going out on a limb for a Texas Tech upset. Why the hell not? Also, I picked UGA to win so they'll get another dose of my bad mojo. It worked last week.

What you lookin' at?

2010-09-17T00:02:00.000-04:00

He's back, on a two-to-three day rotation, and that is all we get.

Tomcats... You can love 'em, but you can't trust 'em.

That said, I have a serious weak spot for ole Romeo. He's the bomb.

Off-Label Use of Party Platter?

2010-09-10T22:02:00.000-04:00

Arguably it is rather cat shaped.

Really Bad Football Picks

2010-09-09T22:07:00.004-04:00

This year I decided to share my weekly picks from the prediction contest on a message board I frequent. Meant to do this last week, but got busy and didn't get to it. I'll just give you the Cliff Notes version: I sucked. 2-for-6 and I was wrong about beating the spread on one of those two. (Basically, it doesn't matter what you predict for the actual score - the points come from the score differential compared to the spread.) VT, you're dead to me.

This week, I tried a new tactic: the George Costanza method. Whatever I think will happen or wish would happen, I picked the opposite (except for the Tech game, of course - can't bet against my Jackets). This way, I will either be happy that the games worked out my way, or I will do well in the contest. Win-win for me.

Here goes: Week 2

GT 35 Kansas(+12) 17

UGA(+2.5) 3 USCe 2

FSU(+8.5) 17 Okla 20

Mich(+4) 9 ND 24

Miami(+9.5) 21 Ohio St 28

NCState(+2.5) 14 UCF 10

Now I'm going back to watching the Thursday night game. I'm rooting for MSU, which means they are DOOMED. They'd be in the lead right now if they had stuck with their running game. And the kicker catching his own kickoff was badass. Our kicker has never done that, although he has tackled the returner an alarming number of times. Carry on!

Fun on The Flats

2010-09-05T16:49:00.003-04:00

Opening Day was a success - good friends, good weather, good game.

Came home to beer brats and more football on the tube. Glad the season is finally here and there is even more reason to look forward to Saturdays (plus the occasional Thursday night). Go Jackets!

Brace For Impact

2010-09-04T00:05:00.002-04:00

It's game day!

What is it with guys and the remote?

2010-09-03T00:43:00.000-04:00

Even Silvio hogs it.

Way to go, Panthers!

2010-09-02T22:55:00.002-04:00

Georgia State University won their first ever football game tonight against Shorter. Congrats to former Georgia Tech coach Bill Curry and his GSU Panthers!

And a big HOORAY that it is finally college football season at last. I spent a pleasant evening channel surfing between multiple games.

Nesbitt 4 Heisman

2010-09-02T00:33:00.000-04:00

John Heisman was the head coach at Georgia Tech from 1904 to 1919. No Georgia Tech player has ever won the trophy named for him. Maybe this year?

Side note: the first player (other than Nesbitt) featured in this video was my favorite GT football player while he was on the Flats -- Gary Guyton. He has a good thing going with the Patriots now. My current favorite is Roddy Jones. He is a senior, so next year I will have to pick another one.

Paging Dr. Lou

2010-09-01T21:58:00.001-04:00

It's not college football without Dr. Lou. Here he is courtesy of Lucas Cox.

The Agony of Defeat

2010-08-31T10:38:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I covered the thrill of victory. Today I bring you this poor guy. The real comedy gold is with the ESPN announcers commentary as it plays out.

Are You Ready?

2010-08-30T19:22:00.003-04:00

College Football starts this week. I'm more than ready, and will be celebrating all week on the blog. For starters, here are some highlights from one of our best games last fall - Georgia Tech's upset win over Virginia Tech on October 17, 2009. It was very satisfying.

Cats Are Back!

2010-08-27T00:12:00.000-04:00

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

They skipped Zima's favorite: "butt-n-the-face"

It's not our favorite...

Not A Cat

2010-08-20T10:47:00.001-04:00

A change of pace for today. Happy now, LL?

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted

2010-08-15T23:28:00.004-04:00

Vacation, had to get away.

Really missing vacations right about now.

This photo is from the Primitive Trail in the Devil's Garden section of Arches National Park. Great hike. Not a soul in sight, which is the way we like it. I posted a bunch of photos from Arches on Flickr this weekend.

We don't have any plans for the next one, and that makes me antsy. I like having something to look forward to, even if I have a long time to wait until it happens. I haven't been able to pin PDM down to anything more specific than one football away game weekend trip in October. Working on him for something in mid December. Don't know where, but I am open to suggestions. Probably not too far from Atlanta, if I want to have a reasonable chance of convincing him to go. PDM doesn't ski, so it needs to be somewhere warm and sunny. Maybe Jekyll Island again, or somewhere in Florida.

Mox on the glider

2010-08-13T00:56:00.000-04:00

She has it all to herself, thanks to our insufferable heat wave that never ends. Too hot for porch sittin' if you are human. I think the only creatures that like this weather are the cicadas.

Silent Roar

2010-08-06T11:45:00.003-04:00

One of my photos from the Philly trip. You can see more here.

Wanderer

2010-07-30T09:54:00.001-04:00

We haven't seen him since his brief appearance on Tuesday night. *sigh*

Lost and Found

2010-07-27T23:32:00.002-04:00

Romeo went missing for four days. I didn't think I would ever see him again. Had already combed through the local animal rescue websites without finding him, but what I saw there made me even more sad and depressed. (Who gives up a 14 year old cat for adoption?!? Who?)

He came back this evening like nothing ever happened. Shrugged off the extra affection, but accepted the triple food ration.

Such is life when you love a tomcat.

Misbehaving

2010-07-23T00:03:00.000-04:00

"But Mom, it was empty!"

Solo

2010-07-21T23:35:00.002-04:00

The last night of a business trip is my alone time. By this time, I've seen everyone I wanted to see, and socialized with my co-workers who are here on several occasions. Brain is full. Body is tired. And I've got one more night alone before I go home to PDM and the cats. The last night of a trip is my time for indulgence.

After my last session, I came back the room and took a long nap. Got up and went for a long walk around Philly, solo. After sundown, I enjoyed a room service supper and a bottle of local wine that I bought at the Reading Terminal Market (which is a wonderful place). Pretty good wine for east coast winery.

I fly home tomorrow. PDM tells me that Stray Cat Romeo isn't eating very much this week. Maybe he misses me. We'll find out tomorrow! On Friday, it is back to business as usual.

Dork Central

2010-07-20T23:07:00.003-04:00

If you've ever been to any type of "physics convention" then you know what I mean. The rest of you can only imagine. And reality is so much worse...

Traveling Again

2010-07-18T21:04:00.003-04:00

Q. What's dark, ridiculously loud, and kind of stinky?

A. The last row of a MD-88 aircraft.

I'm in Philly until Thursday, for a frenzied week of continuing education activities (oh, joy). The 7:30am start time doesn't thrill me, nor do the long days, but it will be fun to see some old friends.

Bored Now

2010-07-16T00:07:00.002-04:00

Summer doldrums. Hot. Sticky. Boring. Ho hum.

Damn you, Safety Guy (v. 2.0)!!

2010-07-12T22:55:00.000-04:00

This time he took the panini maker.

I swear, I think Safety Guy's purpose in life is to confiscate any electronic appliance that makes people comfortable and/or happy. I'll never forgive him for taking my crappy old heater. Unless he brings me a new one. Then all is forgiven. Not holding my breath.

I can haz CDO?

2010-07-09T22:44:00.001-04:00

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

It's too hot to post my own cat photo. Plus... GUILTY.

100

2010-07-08T17:12:00.002-04:00

Good thing it only "feels like" 97F. How do they figure that? Soaking wet and standing in front of a fan?!?

And now... a cat.

2010-07-02T05:35:00.003-04:00

Call of the Wild

2010-06-30T23:03:00.002-04:00

Romeo left a dead chipmunk (in pieces) on our doorstep. The "gift" makes it official. He's our cat.

Zima's out there right now helping him dispose of the legs. I could actually hear her crunching the little bones with gusto. There's also a head, an unidentifiable organ (stomach? liver?), and some entrails left over. Hope that stuff's not still there in the morning.

Thirsty

2010-06-26T16:32:00.002-04:00

You know how they tell you not to go grocery shopping while hungry, because of all the silly extra food you'll buy? Yeah, well you probably shouldn't shop while thirsty either. I did, and this is what I came home with:

1 6-pack IBC cream soda
2 8-packs of mini Cokes
1 12 pack of fresca in cans
1 container of lemonade mix (makes 8 quarts!)
3 cans frozen limeade concentrate (6 more quarts!)
2 6-packs of Sweetwater beers (sch'wheat and blue)
4 bottles of wine (3 red, 1 white)

What was on my list? Lemonade and wine.

I did much better with the food. Purchased items not on my list? Four ears of corn, because it was fresh and really cheap. And fish sauce, because we used up our last bottle last week. Can't make Thai without fish sauce. I like to keep our spur-of-the-moment options open. We have a somewhat different list of staple items than normal people...

Hanging in there.

2010-06-25T00:08:00.000-04:00

Solstice

2010-06-21T09:26:00.002-04:00

The days won't get any longer than today, but hotter days are still ahead. Enjoy your summer!

Ours now.

2010-06-18T00:02:00.003-04:00

Meet our fourth cat, Romeo. We started feeding this stray, because he was hanging around our house every day and we felt sorry for him. He is friendly, not feral. He has not been fighting with our cats since we started feeding him. They tolerate him surprisingly well.

We're slowly winning him over. He is liking human contact more every day. The idea is to get him tame enough to take him to the vet for some basic care (yes, including the Big Fix at some point). He is stocky, not skinny, but might have worms or other health problems. We'll see.

He'll be an outdoor cat for always, most likely. But no less loved. I think he is happy that he finally found someone to love him. He certainly seems more comfortable and relaxed these days. And I am already attached, even though I can't really be demonstrative with him out of an abundance of caution.

Redecorated

2010-06-16T23:02:00.004-04:00

Lots of new options for templates on Blogger. Couldn't resist. And so much easier than painting the house.

A few short shots.

1. Work is really trying my patience. Oh what the hell. My patience lasted about five minutes, and then I just about exploded. *sigh* Whatever. I'll get over it. Because I like having a job.

2. Fermicat's law of occasional banking: If you let a few checks sit around your house for months and then finally take them to the bank, you will find another check in your mailbox the minute you get home. I shit you not.

3. Old comedy shows contain jokes that are REALLY DATED. Tonight's show seemed like a blast from the distant past, but it was only five years old. Wow. And now they are showing stuff from the late 80s. OK, that schtick is really old. Funny, but old.

Not a Fan

2010-06-13T17:19:00.006-04:00

Any hopes of this sports fan branching out into soccer (I refuse to call it "football" because I am southern and American) have been dashed this weekend, and not just because the greatly hyped USA vs. England game ended in a 1-1 tie. No, anyone who has watched even one minute of the World Cup can guess what has me so put off by the experience. Need a hint? Ok.

BbzzzzzzzzzzHHHHMMMMMMMMMMbzzzzzzzzzzzzzzBZZBBZZZZZZ...

Those damn plastic trumpets blew it for me! (Howdya like that pun?) I am not alone in this opinion. The noise from these vuvuzelas is a constant, annoying, irritating din that JUST. NEVER. STOPS. It goes on and on and on during the entire game without any breaks and hardly a change in tone. The din makes me CRAZY. It sounds like an angry hive of giant bees. Can't stand it. And I won't be watching any more games thankyouverymuch. Unless the networks invent a vuvuzela noise filter that cancels it out on their broadcasts. Then... maybe. But then there is that whole "1-1" thing. So maybe not.

Lodge Cats

2010-06-11T00:07:00.001-04:00

Some comfy cats at the lodge in Utah where we stayed on vacation. Ah, I miss vacation...

They also had buffalo.

The Peep Toe Rebellion

2010-06-07T22:51:00.002-04:00

Like most places of business, my employer has a dress code. Some of it makes sense, and some of it doesn't. For example, you can wear a short skirt, but not capri pants or city shorts or skorts, all of which are more modest than a short skirt. Unnatural hair color is not allowed (but seen all over the place), as are "prominent visible tattoos" (which the chairman's secretary sports very visibly on her upper arms). Red nail polish is on both the approved and the prohibited list! The kicker is that the dress code isn't evenly enforced, at least as far as I can tell. I see gross violations on a daily basis. So when our administrator wants our department to toe the line, it causes a lot of resentment when we see other departments getting away with a lot of stuff that doesn't fly in our neck of the woods.

I can see the need for many of the provisions if an employee has patient contact, or works in a lab, or does other dangerous or messy jobs. For those who spend their days toiling behind a desk with a computer, some rules appear to be quite arbitrary. At any rate, when the person who enforces the rules doesn't strictly adhere to them, they lose any moral authority they had in being the person to say "no". And that is exactly the situation in my department.

Thus... the peep toe rebellion. Sure, we are supposed to wear closed toe shoes. But this is the deep south in hot weather. And the admin has been seen upon multiple occasions wearing peep toed shoes. With no hosiery. Also a violation. Hah!

So I've stopped just walking on by the rows and rows of cute shoes in the shoe store that don't exactly fit with the dress code. I won't do a flagrant disregard of the rules and wear completely open toed shoes. But if a toe or two happens to just peek out of my shoes, I ain't sweatin' it. I'm a (tiny little) rebel.

Odd Eyed CatBlogging

2010-06-04T11:26:00.004-04:00

Zima and her pretty eyes wish you a happy weekend.

May Showers

2010-05-31T18:15:00.003-04:00

We're having a lot of them lately. Typical weather for this time of year in the deep south. The rain didn't stop us from hosting our PDMPMDP* yesterday. It was a lot of fun. You don't have to take my word for it - just ask Dave.

I also had a birthday during the day-before-the-party cooking and cleaning blitz. We took time out to have mimosas in the afternoon, and PDM took me out for a very nice dinner late that evening. He also gave me a new toy for the DSLR. It is lens extension tube that allows you to take macro (close-up) photos using your standard lenses. Pretty cool (the photo above was shot with it). The cats gave me a "I aim to misbehave" t-shirt. They're big fans of Captain Malcolm Reynolds.

*Party Down Marty's Pre-Memorial Day Party!

Long Weekend CatBlogging

2010-05-28T16:04:00.000-04:00

Moxy can't wait to party.