The Saga of Peeps

Without a pet for many years, I recently had the pleasure of the company of a kitten for a few days.  We think she is a girl and that she is about 12 weeks old. We call her Peeps.  I turned 76 the day before she came to stay.  You can see, in that age difference, that the kitten had a distinct advantage, but we made out just fine.  I have lived with kittens and cats before.  I had forgotten what it was like. I do love cats and dogs. My scabs are healing nicely.

Below are excerpts from a bit of writing about living with a kitten after several years of being pet free. I figured Peeps' people would ask about how I made out with her...  so...

Day 1: Kitty exploration in general.  Seems to be just fine.  Ate well.

Day 2: Peeps is settling in nicely and, as I thought, is definitely not the demon cat I was warned about. She is a teeny, precious purring machine and other than liking to sleep on my face or neck last night off and on – no problem whatsoever.   A short time later....

Peeps just cleaned off my desk a bit as I type and is now playing with something over by the fire place that sounds like a piece of plastic – not sure what it is, but is think it is part of my paper cutter … oh wait a minute – she is now sitting on my shoulder after a flying leap from across the room.  It is clear to me at this moment that she did not have  her nails trimmed before her people left. I am sure the bleeding will stop shortly.  Just kidding…  I don’t think she even broke the skin.  Will double check that later – just in case.  

Update -- From the sounds of it now – Peeps appears to be trying to dismantle the doors on the fireplace – good thing she can’t open the doors and mess around inside that.  Curiosity killed the cat after all.  We can't have any kitty injuries. Not on my watch! Six more sleeps.

Day 3: Peeps and I are getting along just fine.  Counting today her fam will be picking her up after five more sleeps.  They warned me that she can be sort of a demon kitty once in a while, but I find her to be more of an attack cat or Ninja as she lurks under my bed only to dart out and attack my feet as I pass by.  This new development is a bit unsettling.... Five more sleeps.

Day 4:  Peeps and I need to be a bit more active today.  Am hoping to tire her out a bit before heading to bed this evening.  She walks on me off and on all night and purrs very loudly – sort of like a jet engine coming in for a landing on my house.  I think she misses sharing a comfy dog bed with her huge German Shepherd buddy and crawling all over her.  No wonder the Shepherd sometimes puts Peep’s entire head into her big dog mouth.  I totally get it. 

Hoping for a good night's sleep, I tried to keep Peeps awake yesterday afternoon, but there is no reasoning with her.  When she falls asleep she is like a sack of warm breathing fur covered Jello. If you even try to stand her up, she just purrs and settles into whatever is underneath her.  She is a teeny cuddling creature… so cute… just a bit too much energy for me sometimes.  Right now – she is the picture of innocence all settled in the reclining chair across the room.  I am wearing a thick hooded sweatshirt this morning so that when she decides to leap onto my shoulders, her claws will have a thick layer of fabric that will offer my skin a chance.  I am not stupid. I have lived with cats before. 

Just got an idea – perhaps Peeps might like to explore the basement today instead of napping.  I could sweep around the edges while she explores everything.  I think this plan has possibilities.  We will see.  Four more sleeps.    

Day 5:  Peeps slept through the night last night with no walking on my face or trying to sleep on my neck.  I fed her three times yesterday instead of the two times that were suggested + she had exploration time in the basement – plan to do the same today while I am cleaning down there… and she has already gobbled down breakfast... the first of three meals. Am hoping this sleeping through the night will continue.  I get up early enough as it is. (Note -- a second time of basement exploring didn't work. Peeps definitely has a mind of her own and her own agenda.)  Three more sleeps.

Day 6: All’s well here.  Peeps has settled in nicely, but in a fit of zoomies and her decision to repeatedly attack my feet by biting them, she earned a time out in my bedroom for about a half an hour yesterday afternoon. I have decided that I need to wear thick socks at all times.  Her little teeth are very sharp. Needles. She looks so bright eyed and innocent, but when she gets going, she is a challenge.  Don’t think she speaks English yet, but basically she is doing well here without her fam. 

My Granddaughter texted yesterday in response to a couple of pics I texted her. (The only time Peeps holds still is when she is sleeping.  Photos are rare.) She asked that I tell Peeps that she misses her.  I did. Peeps just looked at me with a blank, but sweet kitty expression and softly bit my thumb.  We are working on communication skills.  I definitely like having her around, but… two more sleeps. 

Day 7: Peeps, who is the size of a large sandwich roll, knocked the heavy lamp off the table next to my reclining chair yesterday while I was talking on the phone.  That seemed to end the zoomies for that episode. The lamp is totally fine.  I may have to knock it off myself today to calm her down when she is zooming. She goes from cuddly little fur ball to monster kitten flying around like a attack bat. She loves having the chairs back from their reupholstering, btw.  (They were just returned today.)  She can fly from the book room doorway, a few feet away, to land on an end chair, jump from there to the table and after a quick slide across that - skimming the centerpiece as she goes by – land on the chair at the other end of the table.  It is impressive.  I think I should remove the centerpiece at some point to give her a clear slide.  She tends to like to do that in a leap, fly, jump, slide, repeat mode.  She amuses herself.  It’s all rather astounding.  If I could get her interested in sliding everywhere, I could borrow her once in a while and never have to dust again. The problem is, as I mentioned before, she doesn't speak English yet. Or it may be that cats just do their own thing or that she is ignoring me.  I should know that really. Okay am off to see what cord Peeps is chewing on now. Those sharp little teeth!  One more sleep.  

Day 8: Peeps is doing her leap and slide thing across the dining room table at the moment… she sounds like a herd of baby elephants who can run very, very fast.  Ah Peeps!  It’s going to seem so very quiet and calm once you go home this morning to your family of people and your dogs too. Am thinking that especially the Shepherd puppy, who is the size of a small camel at this point, has probably missed the little Peeps.  They are an odd pair of buddies.  Wonder what it is like if they both get the zoomies at the same time??? I am almost afraid to ask if that has ever happened? The older, more mature and sensible dog, seems to ignore them both.  Smart one.

Peeps can come again to hang out another time. I will rest up and try to be ready. Hopefully she will understand English by that time. Do cats outgrow Zoomies?  I am trying to remember.

Piece of Cake

 Remember as an innocent child when you just knew that adults knew everything and had all the answers to all the questions?  Ah youth! Those were the days.  Now in the last half of my 70's, it seems to me that aging and the "adulting" that comes along with that are definitely not all they are cracked up to be.  Actually I think I have known that for a long time -- maybe since the late teenage years.  I find, and have found, however,  that it is sort of amusing to watch myself work through the process.

I have been the chief cook and bottle washer of my home for many years.  Hope to be able to continue in that role for a long time to come.  It takes effort  -- seems more now than when I had the energy and stamina of youth and...  two wonderful kids still at home to help out. We were a good team. Sometimes I now have to hire out the occasional exterior chore that I do not want to do (or cannot do), but the interior is still basically my domain except for the big heavy chores and repairs that are beyond my skill set which is basically almost everything except using a semi colon properly which rarely comes in handy.  Case in point is installing a new capacitor in an AC unit a few days ago.  That requires expertise way beyond me. Fortunately for me -- I know people who know how to do that. Then again there is the situation of ... I know someone who knows someone.  That is how I found the guy to wash the exterior of my house, clean out all the gutters and the scrub the outside of all my windows.  Perfect. That was a good day. The smell of cleanliness came through the walls. Amazing... and I didn't even break a sweat. I love a project like that. You may have noticed that neither of those jobs requires punctuation.

So anyway  ...  another perk available in our times to those of us who don't know how to do stuff ... YouTube videos.  They often prove to be a huge help if I remember to search for them.  Thankful for people who take the time to make and post videos. I think, actually, that I may have written about this before. Anyway ... videos are not as fun or as interesting as real people are, but they can be helpful and sometimes amusing as well.  A couple of weeks ago I was able to learn how to remove toggle bolts (those thingamajigs with the sort of inside out or backward wings on them).  I wanted to take two of them out and not ruin dry wall in the process.  I was impressed with myself in trying -- even though I was a total failure when attempting the first method I discovered on YouTube which entailed using an old wine opener.  (Oh how I would have loved to tell people that I successfully used an old fashioned wine opener to remove toggle bolts from dry wall.)  I also used "the" YouTube to help me with instructions for preparation and use of spackling and then sanded, and touched up the spots with 25 year old paint.  The bolts were removed, the dry wall survived beautifully, and a new framed counted cross-stitch project was hung.  Ta Da!  You can teach an old dog new tricks.  I am living proof.  Turns out the whole process was a "piece of cake".  

Piece of cake. Strange expression ... right?  Thankful that American English is my native language. It is so weird. Bet you all know what I mean in that. I would have a hard time learning all its idiosyncrasies if it were my second language. Seems like I was "on a roll" today -... language wise ...  Piece of Cake. Adulting. Cracked up to be.  Chief cook and bottle washer.  Break a sweat. Thingamajig. Old dog/new tricks.  Communication is sometimes very interesting.   Happy Thursday!

New Jeans

I ordered three pair of American Eagle jeans last week and they arrived in no time. Must mention -- the three different styles I ordered sold out almost immediately after I placed my order.  Did I need new jeans? No, I did not.  Do I love them?  Yes.  Reasonably priced?  I would say so in comparison to many I have seen ... plus ...  they were "on sale". Do I feel good about my purchase? I do ... on a couple of different levels. New jeans are fun for one thing, but there is more....

Had I ever heard of Sydney Sweeney before an American Eagle jeans commercial involving a simple play on words? No, I had not. Apparently this ad sparked a flame that fueled a hubbub that turned back on those protesting in a rather impressive way - - some say the protest became a total fiasco for them.  Impressive backfire.   I admit that I enjoyed the entire process.  I am thinking American Eagle, based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, liked it as well.

You wage your protest, I will wage mine.  Apparently I am not alone in being sick and tired of the assault on common sense and of what appears to be a total loss of a sense of humor or of an appreciation of word play.

Good for American Eagle. Good for Sydney Sweeney. You stand your ground quietly and with dignity against an assault of raging attention seekers.  Sadly, in their own way -- fixated within their limited vocabulary-- they are also missing out on comfy jeans.

Watch the power of the silent majority. The pendulum swings both ways. It's time is now. 

Some think that perhaps its time is past due.

Take a HIke

 I have written about fun and funny t-shirts before -- but I have to mention the one I heard about recently that promoted walking and enjoying the "wilds".  A good friend of mine was wearing this "Take a Hike" t-shirt when someone in proximity was offended and felt it necessary to have a confrontation with her about it.  People seem to be more like that these days... more in your face. I think it's stress related and that it comes from not getting your own way when you think you are entitled to it.  That's a whole other concern... one I don't feel like writing about because I am sick of that a type of condescending behavior and ... I don't want to give them any attention.  They have had enough as far as I am concerned. Perhaps it is time for them to sit down and reevaluate a bit.  I say they should do their pouting, whining, and criticizing alone... perhaps in front of a mirror so they can come to appreciate what they look and sound like.) Once fashionable ... cultural condescending, confrontational outrage is on the way out. I am so tired of this nitwittery and meanness. Please....  You live your life; I will live mine.

Anyway, switch gears -- the central idea of the whole first paragraph brings me to my new doormats. (Yes, you read that correctly -- new doormats.) Recently I purchased not one, but two door mats... one for the front porch door and one for the kitchen porch door.  They are cheery WELCOME mats each with a tree of life featured prominently.  I love them.  They are warmly welcoming. There was a large selection of reasonably priced sturdy mats at this place, and ...  I have to admit, I was amused by and tempted by another door mat that read:  "Go Away!"  I passed it over and "went nice" because I would never want to hurt anyone's feelings, and I don't think everyone would find it as funny as I do.   

My sense of humor is not appreciated by all.  I know this and do try to manage it properly.  My family and close friends understand and, thankfully, we can laugh together.  It's bonding to share or to at least appreciate a sense of humor that is, to some, a bit twisted.  This bonding is also a blessing.  I am thankful... especially in this time of cultural unrest when others seem to be so willing to tell others how to live their lives and to attempt to limit others' word choice and freedom of speech. They seem to have lost a sense of humor. Perhaps they should take a hike, enjoy nature, and get some fresh air. Perhaps they could use a more welcoming door mat.

Wheels and AI

"Round and round it goes, and where it stops nobody knows"  -- an interesting phrase sometimes used to describe the uncertainties of life or the seemingly cyclical nature of things.  It is also used within the context of gambling -- more specifically in roulette. Spin that wheel... 

Was working on an acrostic puzzle the other day when I encountered the clue: "The 'wheel of death' may be part of this act (2 wds., hyph.)"  The title of the puzzle is "Lions and Tigers and Bears. Oh my!" So, for some reason, I immediately thought about a circus  when, perhaps, I should have been thinking of the Wizard of OZ.  Anyway ... this led me to remembering knife-throwing. It fit the puzzle.  Now the thing is, I cannot for the life of me wonder why I never thought about how stupid this particular entertainment is.  Really.  Think about it!  Now I am wondering if this is still done in circuses or magic shows anymore.  Does a circus still exist anywhere in the world?  Hmmm.... Be right back....  Just looked it up.  It does -- but with an emphasis shift away from animals to a focus more on humans doing things like acrobatics and aerial acts.  Interesting.  Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey still exist.  Nice. Wonder where is the world they are right now?

Back to the knife-throwing wheel of death.  As I remember it, some woman who was unfortunate enough to have landed this job, was tied (splayed actually) to a wheel (wrists and ankles).  Then ... potential victim securely attached, the wheel was then set in a spinning motion, while a man, most likely blindfolded, threw knives at her.  Yikes.  Anyway -- it got me to thinking about the stupid and dangerous things that people do, so I asked AI to give me a list. AI found no results.  Yes, you read that correctly.  No results in a search for stupid and dangerous things that people do. I mean I can think of a dozen things off the top of my head. All this being said...

I don't think I am ready to trust my safety and health to AI yet.  Perhaps AI is still too young to have good judgement.  Or ... perhaps I didn't ask it correctly.  Either way ... I sometimes think I have dealt with enough huge changes in my 3/4 of a century.  I am tired of all the adjusting.  Changes, like AI -- "round and round it goes, and where it stops nobody knows."  It's exhausting to think about and ... perhaps more than a bit of a gamble. Not sure I want to play this game. Too late now. I told the AI on my phone to go away and not come back.  It appeared one day --  uninvited. It's still there.  It doesn't seem to follow instructions well. 

Think I will go water my flowers.

Fortune Cookies

Fortune cookies are way more than just sugary goodness.  There is a lot to know about them.  Come to find out, much to my surprise, they are not even Chinese in origin...  but rather are thought to have come to the west coast of the United States in the late 19th or early 20th century - from Japan.  Surprise, Surprise. Learn something new every day -- whether you want to or not.  

I have always liked fortune cookies -- a nice little surprise to open at the end of a delicious Chinese take-out meal.  Sometimes they are philosophical in nature, or contain a fortune of some sort.  In other cases they have a list of lucky numbers for those who play a lottery or something witty and/or funny. Nice variety.

One of my favorite "fortunes" was mentioned in one of my all time favorite movies, The Big Chill.  "You will never amount to anything."  It still makes me laugh. That message seemed so unexpected somehow.  It caught me off guard.

Recently I encountered a few more "fortunes" while playing Guru Mahjong which, by the way, I had to delete from my phone because I was spending way too much time playing.  These are my faves from that source:

• You have the heart of a lion -- and the attention span of a squirrel.
• Life's a Journey.  Take a snack.

I think everyone would like to be reassured by a message like "Your spiritual path is unfolding exactly as it should." However... that is often not the case. More likely -- you would encounter an aphorism -- something like "If it seems fates are against you today, they probably are."

If I were going to write a fortune for a cookie, it might have something to do with a phrase I encountered recently that has been stuck in my brain.  It involves trying to avoid having your ass nailed to a high pole. It's such a catchy phrase really ... and such a clear image.  I sort of love it.

One last Fortune cookie fact.  Fortune cookies were made by hand until the late 1960's when a fortune cookie machine was invented by Edward Louie.  If you didn't already know that, you learned something from my blog today.  My work for today is done.  Am off to order some take-out.

Phone Gap

There is a definite difference in the way generations think of phones. I think of it as a Phone Gap. For example, some of the older generation function better with both a landline and a cellphone, but ... having both doesn't always simplify things.  A case in point is the situation that a writer friend of mine described recently in an email. It was about two recent calls from her daughter. I can picture the whole thing and admit that I find it very funny. 

She called the house phone. I was on the deck, so by the time I got my feet off the chair that I pull close and use as a stool, moved it out of my way so I wouldn't trip over it and face-plant on the deck, got my sandals on (the deck floor was hot ) and into the house, she'd left me a message........but she was calling me now on my cell, which was out on the deck. 

Tell me, that you haven't had a "been there" kind of "phone" experience. In another situation ... just this week I accidentally hit something on my cellphone that made it start to record the conversation I was having with my son, and I couldn't get it to stop even though I tried hanging up on him twice.  He later texted me instructions on how to handle the record feature on an android and, once again, patiently suggested I get an iPhone. I find that very funny too. Poor guy -- he must be just shaking his head. I am a fan of Android.

Back to the phone gap for a minute -- there is the tendency of the younger generation(s) to think of the cellphone as a permanent addition to their body... perhaps attachment is a better word.  Have you seen anyone lately without a phone in their hand?  Is it true that more and more people are tripping and bumping into things?  I gave up smoking because I didn't like that something stupid was controlling my life.  I leave my phone sitting places on purpose now for the same reason. I will see that you called. I will get back to you... probably shortly, because, I, too, am a bit too attached.

One more thing -- I think I still have a pretty good reason for keeping my landline even though I rarely answer it as it seems to have morphed into the recipient of all things SPAM. Here's the reason. The last time I checked, my county was still unable to track the location of an emergency if the call comes in to the 911 Call Center from a cellphone and the person calling is unable to speak for some reason.  A landline they can track.  That seems like a good reason to me. I probably should check again to see if that situation still exists.  I know they were working on being able to track a cellphone the last time I called. 

There are some disadvantages to living in rural NW Pennsylvania.  However, I still think the advantages outweigh them. I do have excellent cell service, so there is that.