I can’t get up for two minutes without Harriet stealing my seat. And when I come back, she pretends she can’t hear or see me, because she knows I’m going to tell her to move.
Category: Pets
Perpetual Motion Machines
This is why I don’t have many photos of the kittens.
Henry in the Kitchen Window
Henry has recently discovered that she can reach the kitchen window. It’s quickly becoming her favorite spot for bird watching.
Friday Animal Blogging
Clockwise from bottom left: Polly, Henry, and Harriet
It’s not often that all three of them are close enough to get a group photo at the same time that I have a camera in my hands. I love the way Harriet is looking over her shoulder at Henry, who has an ever so slightly evil glint in her left eye. Miss Brown knows that cats are bad news.
Bad Polly
Polkadottie
One of the quirks that the late Polkadottie never outgrew was a taste for headphone cords. Eventually, no matter how careful I was, every pair of headphones I bought would be demolished by her. Maybe it’s a tortie cat thing? Polly has now killed three pairs of headphones. The first time was a learning experience, the second time was my fault for not putting my iPod away, but the third time? The horrid little brat got into my bag and pulled out the headphones.
Polly
Bad Henry
No roll of toilet paper is safe from Miss Henry.
Miss Brown
From the end of the sofa, Harriet can keep an eye on the patio. She thinks she’s the neighborhood watch. She’s not at all barky, but grumbles and whines whenever people or other dogs trespass on her territory. And, her territory is everything she can see. She gets particularly upset when cats walk along the tree line at the other side of the back field.
Harriet spent some time outside with me (away from the horrible, no good kittens) while I moved some plants around in the garden. She’s been very good about staying out of the flower beds, which surprises me. While I was working, she just sunbathed and pretty much ignored what I was doing.
Kittens
I love it when Henry sprawls like that. She’s half frog, half kitten, and all cute.
Musical Interlude
The mellow edition.
Opal, Harriet Brown
This is obviously where Miss Brown got her name. I fell in love with the song the first time I heard it, but it wasn’t until much later, when someone in one of my art forums pointed out the name’s origin, that I learned it was one of the aliases Greta Garbo’s used when she “Wanted to be alone.” It’s a sad and whimsical song.
Ms. Lea and I were roommates at the time. Her ex-boyfriend had made some tapes for her. One of them had Opal’s Early Recordings on one side and their Happy Nightmare Baby on the other. The apartment was tiny, and we repurposed the livingroom as a bedroom, so the only common area was the kitchen. That’s where the stereo was, with my room across the hall, so whatever was playing, that’s what I was listening to. Opal, The Jesus and Mary Chain’s Automatic, and T. Rex’s Beard of Stars are how I remember that time
Ms. Lea got Kizmet when we lived there. She was looking for a black cat to replace the one we’d been watching for her ex-boyfriend. Kizmet needed a home, and the timing was right. The only problem was that–we soon discovered–she was pregnant. That’s how I got Pandora. I wanted one of the kittens, preferably female, preferably the runt. I had her name picked out before she was born. I think there must have been a little bit of kismet at work there.
Catfishing
Fishing for Kitties (And One Puppy)
It took me three trips to Target, but I finally managed to get a decent, working camera. It was a total pain in my ass. The camera is not the one I originally wanted, nor was it the second one I wanted. And it’s definitely not the brand I wanted. I’m a Canon/Kodak person, not a Nikon person (kind of like a I’m a PC person, not a Mac person?). The camera is nice enough, but everything is in the wrong place.
It also doesn’t have a view-finder, which I realize is pretty standard for new point-and-shoot cameras. I don’t like it, though. I don’t like that most of the menus are accessed via the LCD screen. I don’t like using the LCD screen, period. It’s not good for composing photos, for sure. It’s also a battery hog, which makes it a less than ideal way to change camera settings.
That said, the test photos and video I took seem Just Fine. My problems with the camera are on the design end, not with the lens and processor, and obviously, the lens and processor are what matters.
But most importantly, I just cannot stand Ashton Kutcher.
red paper boat 