Quote of the Day

"A woman without a man is like

a fish without a bicycle."

Cat Sitting... (whatever it's called)

One week down, one to go.

I've been dropping in every-other day on a coworker's two cats while he's traveling on business since last Sunday when he left. The two cats are Tank (reddish, stripped male), and Slick (all black female).

I thought this would be enjoyable, and relatively easy... excluding the fact that I have to drive there after work, I'm severely asthmatic (especially when there's cat hair all over EVERYTHING! The TV, the counters, the carpets, the chairs, the blanket, EVERYWHERE), and I don't think I'm getting paid for doing this. Though I'm going to try and work this out, as what has transpired over the past week wasn't expected by me, warned by him, etc. It's been a bit of a nightmare, actually.

Just a couple things... they knocked over a heavy wooden chair, his guitar, the DVD player and cable box from above the TV (they may now be broken and not work at all), found their treats... opened, emptied, and ate the entire jar, vomited on the carpet (was it the treats? Maybe not, I've since found out that cats just do this), and yesterday was my major freakout...

I walked in, greeted Tank as I usually do, and noticed bird feathers all around the foyer area, and in the living room too. This couldn't be good, as they don't have a kitty toy that's like a bird. I started to panic and look around and I found a dead bird lying in the middle of the bedroom floor!!!!! O... M... G! Still, more feathers strewn about, and a glob of blood on the wall.

If you know me at all (and, well, if you don't), I am NOT "a cat person." In fact, I had pet cockatiels for 22 years, and I am passionate about pet rats. NOT CATS. This poor little bird probably had the most terrifying end to her (yes, it was a her) life, and I was angry at the cats, and felt badly for the bird. What if she was a mama bird and has a nest full of eggs somewhere nearby? Geesh. It was apparent that she got in through the window he left open a few inches that doesn't have a screen! Um, who doesn't have screens on all of their windows, and WHY not? His deck is completely screened in, but his bedroom window is not? WTF? Moving on...

I won't bore you with the details on how I gathered myself and the poor little bird. I will say, however, that all Tank and Slick got during that drop-in (complete w/ surgical mask due to my asthma) was more food, new water, and a "Get away from me you bird killers."

I did not clean up the blood, or the feathers. The other day I attempted to clean up the cat vomit, but there's still a large spot, and the next time I'll be leaving it there. As far as I'm concerned, I'm going above and beyond feeding / watering, and a little bit of playtime and petting. And, if they knock anything else over, that's how it stays.

I'm about to say FUCK IT and see if I can find someone else at work who is able and willing to take care of Tank and Slick for the upcoming week, as I am just not feeling very "bright and cheery" about it anymore. And I was really trying to like them... *sigh*

Shitheads.

New Air Filter... Meaning... a Trip to Checker!

This weekend was meant for lots of errand running, and, some vehicle maintenance on Elvis.

Yesterday, I took him and had an oil change, complete with new oil filter... 1,000 miles early. Am I on the ball or what?!

And today I did one of my favorite things... went to Checker Auto Parts because I belieed it was time for a new air filter. I've been reading that if you change your air filter frequently enough (I forget... it's either every 3 or 6 months), it helps considerably with your vehicle's gas mileage. Yes, I admit, this was my main motivation for my trip to the auto parts store... this time.

I'm not as accustom to Elvis' engine as I was to my previous car, Barney's, but it wasn't difficult to find where the air filter was... just a few clicks of some clips, and there it was.

Note: It's a MUST to do all of this hood-popping and engine-fiddling in the parking lot of Checker, mind you. It's easy to fit in with all the other "dudes" and their open hoods there to buy this and that. Not to mention the looks you get, like, "I wonder if she actually knows what she's doing," and the occasional, "Do you need any help?"

When I pulled out the air filter... EWWWW! I've had Elvis for 1 1/2 years now, so that's AT LEAST how old this air filter was. (See pic...) It had dirt, dust, leaves, cotton wood spores, tiny branches... you name it, it was in there. This couldn't be good.

Needless to say, I bought a brand new shiny white one, popped it in, and drove away. I think I even heard Elvis say "Thank you," over the sound of my music as we drove away.

Last week, I adjusted my tire pressure as well, making sure that all four (4) tires were at 35psi. This too should help w/ my gas mileage. And, on nice days, I'll be walking or biking to / from work.

Greyhounds!!

I LOVE GREYHOUNDS, particularly these two girls... Azrael (white), and Maeve (black).

A coworker / friend of mine was dogsitting, catsitting, and birdsitting for a week, and these were the dogs. She asked me if I wanted to come see them (even though I'm severely allergic to all these mentioned animals), and since I love dogs so much, I said, "Of course!" We took them on a few walks that week, and what a wonderful time I had with Azrael and Maeve. (Look they are smiling too. hee hee)

Azrael took an immediate liking to me which which was awesome... she just loved it when I showed up. Maeve, however, was very skittish and shy and didn't warm up to me completely (when off the leash anyway) until our third and final walk last Saturday morning.

I miss these two girls and I hope to be able to visit / walk them again sometime. If I could, I would run out and get myself a rescued Greyhound, just as these girls were.

P.S. I also groomed the cockatiel that looked a bit neglected and was quite in need of wax removal on his crown, and a good cleaning / sanitizing of his water and food bowls. His crown is now standing upright and he somehow seems to know he's much more handsome now. :)