Naughty

While some of my cats have made it their lifetime goal to scratch up the low pile rug living room rug into shag, others have decided the bedroom shag must be stripped down to its woven core.

Someone who has white belly fur has been working hard on this spot.

I put down a mat to protect the hole and capture the fur.

Aha! I sense this is the culprit. He accepted the mat all right. It looks pretty with his fur.

Shortage

Why is this pantry staple so hard to find? The local family-owned store hasn’t had any for weeks. Granted, they are changing ownership and suppliers so I cut them some slack. But the big chain store only had these 2 meager jars. This is one of Handy’s barbecue (grilling) staples.  We’re stocked up for a bit but he just used a bunch on some baked chicken. I worry about the Q-ing future.

Orangies

I love my orange babies. They are so sweet and rumply. They cuddle up with big brother Hunter on the bed (he was there to the right just out of the picture) and I call it Boys Town. If you position yourself just right, you can sometimes pet 3 cats with only 2 hands.

Glovie Wovies

We are discussing the fall scarecrow for the bookstore window and are planning something pretty amazing.

There was a need for black gloves and at first I thought I didn't have them anymore, but then I thought harder. Self, why would you get rid of elbow length black gloves that never fit you, when you know you would have a use for them some day? Well, I was right. These will be perfect.

Just Call Me Sweeney

Sweeney Todd, that is, as I did a lot of cutting and hacking.

I bought a slab of New York steak on sale for $4.74 a pound. Out came the knives. None of my knives were sharp enough to cut through a tough bit of gristle under the fat, so I wielded some utility shears too.

I love having the vacuum sealer. I sealed up some leftovers too. The freezer is full!


Speaking of butchery....

You can get a better quality of video on some other renditions, but the LuPone/Cerveris revival is my favorite. Long time readers may remember when Patti LuPone flirted with my husband. And I have friends in NOLA who know Michael Cerveris. Enjoy a little priest....

Robbery Update

The bank robber was caught in Missouri!

Meanwhile in the next small town over, 3 small businesses were robbed.

Frank and I were chatting and I said the only break-in I knew of at the book store was when a deer crashed in a window, roamed the store, and escaped out the back. I only know of this secondhand, but I was working at the school then, and we had a deer roaming the corridor so it was probably the same deer dude.

Frank reminded me that the coffee shop had been robbed once. Back door pried open, and the perp took the whole cash drawer not just the cash. Gosh, I just wasn’t aware of that but I did notice when there were extra security plates attached to a few of the doors.

Oh NOES

I'll tell you, I am not thrilled about this.

I've been on 3 juries. That's a lot of civic duty.

With my luck, I'll probably get picked again.

August 5.

Rockin’ and Shockin’

Rocking lobster treats.

And shocking that they are all eating at their designated bowls. Not that it really matters, but Francine is a mite tetchy if her bowl is infringed upon. The boys often rotate. But that one tastes better, Mom!

Who Moved My Box?

I did NOT leave this in the traffic path myself. 

Harry?

Weekend Accomplishments

Last weekend was momentous as I got TWO whole tasks accomplished.

1) Trimmed Harry's undercarriage. It took both Jeff and Handy to hold him down. I got most of the mats cut off and I did not have to shear him clean like a sheep. I hope to do another round soon.  All the other cats do a better job of grooming themselves and like to be brushed.

2) Brodarted the remainder of my Happy Hollisters collection.

This weekend, not so much. I have haphazardly cleaned a portion of the bathroom so maybe I will finally finish that. I still have Sunday!

Boxing Day

I had intended to use these boxes to store some of Ernest's architectural Lego, as I desperately need another bookshelf. But Harry has other ideas.

The Rocket Project

The July book store window is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. I volunteered to make one of my typical grade school projects.

Final materials list: 3 clorox wipes containers, one bag of rice (a weight), 1 paper towel roll, 1 straw, one cereal box, one tissue box, newspaper, flour and water.

Our 4th of July Tradition

As Handy and I age, old traditions fall out of favor. What, go see the fireworks? I'm too tired, I don't want to stay up that late.

However, we still enjoy watching the hot dog eating championship. I had to work so Handy kept me updated.

Then we had our own contest of eating two. I had to pack mine to go. No mustard packets, so I had to make do.

Handy had to share with his little buddy.

Who then pinned him down for the rest of the afternoon.

It's a hard life.

When Life Gives You Lemons

...you drive them?

Handy passed up this lemon on the morning commute. Not to worry, Frank was driving.

I was not given any lemons, but I came across an Italian lemon pound cake recipe so I bought a few.

This cake is delicious.

Not for the squeamish

You might not want to scroll down if you're squeamish.

I'm mostly posting this so I'll be able find it again.  I've been hunting for some old pictures of another squeamish situation involving an invasive rat, and it must have been pre-blog so I have no idea when it happened.

OK I warned you.  I left work at 6:30 Thursday evening after a long bout of vacuuming so I was hot, sweaty, peevish, and glad that my work week was over.

I find this in the parking lot. Note to self, if I hadn't parked in the store's lot, I never would have seen it.

Moral dilemma, do I dispose of it or leave it for someone else. I hunt for a piece of cardboard to shove under it. No luck. Then I remember where the outdoor broom and dustpan is stored.

So I felt pretty proud of myself for overcoming not only my moral dilemma but also my own squeamishness.