Hey there Fambly! Lots of fun adventures are happening everywhere--Mom and Pops are painting the house and then OFF to Utica, Noah and Cici are emmigrating, and Cody's auditioning non-stop. I myself have the world's smallest adventures.
On Saturday we had an event for pet owners, a "pet parade" with a pet/owner look-alike contest and other such nonsense. A photographer came to take official portraits of pets and their owners. I was working, but my co-worker Laurie was super-nice and allowed me to run out for about an hour to get my picture taken with the kitties.
Branden and I carried Squish and Tayler over to the community center. As soon as we started heading down the stairs into the quagmire of dogs, they started up the yowl machines, but were otherwise very well-behaved. They were the only cats in attendance and a whole bunch of people came up and petted the crap out of them, which confused them a little bit ("What? I'm trying to be upset over here but this feels sooooo gooooood"), and then the photographer's room was large and free from any other animals, so they were able to prowl around a little bit and get their bearings. We had several pictures taken, and the cats were surprisingly cooperative, and then we took them home--and even they seemed sort of exhilerated by the experience. They both went outside, hung out in the living room, and snuggled with us that night, so they seemed to not have any lingering anger (which they usually express by hiding under beds and glaring at us).
Anyway, here are the pictures we had taken, and I think they turned out very well:
The Pictures
Username: horizons
Password: myportraits
Then, on Sunday, Branden and I went to Elitch's, then spontaneously caught a movie. After that, we went over to Joe and Sarah's to roleplay. Fun times were had by all.
Monday, I got a haircut, and it's super-cute. Branden picked up some new shoes on Pearl, and we took a walk around down there. The rest of the day was very relaxing and good, with reading, movies, video games.
Unfortunately, I haven't gotten out to work out at all since last Monday. I actually made that decision, but I'm getting back on the horse tomorrow morning. My joints are getting all squeaky.
Okay, love you guys!
Showing posts with label Cats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cats. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
BBQ and Workout Routine
Hello Fam! Small news post today.
First off, my tooth-related New Month Resolution is holding up under pressure. Haven't missed any days in the Month of September so far. My teeth are singing, and that's awesome.
The New Month Resolution regarding working out hasn't been so easy to uphold. First day of workout was last Friday; Saturday I had to Wii Fit instead of going to the gym and while that's good, it's not AS good. Sunday I had a nice 70-minute bike ride, which definitely counted, Monday we cleaned for 5 hours and I called that a workout. Tuesday I didn't do anything physical because I had the infusion and then D&D... and BBQ, but let me get to that in a sec.
But Wednesday... ah Wednesday. I had made (tentative?) plans with Shad to work out that evening, but I know that Shad can be flakey so I was planning on working out that morning. However, I didn't get myself out of bed in time for that. Happily, Shad was as good as his word and showed up at about 6:30 for our workout, only to find out that his cat had peed on his workout bag!!! Ugh!!! But the in-unit washer/dryer to the rescue... a mere hour and a half later his clothes were washed, dried, unstinky and ready to go, so we headed over to the rec center. The machine that I used was a wee bit broken (crossramp couldn't be raised/lowered), but it was a great workout anyway. Afterwards, we staggered back home and watched Branden play video games for a while, then had dinner together. All in all, a very fun night.
This morning, I got up at 7:15 (should have been out the door by then, but better late than never) and headed over to the rec center again. Sadly, I had to use the broken elliptical machine again (but I had reported it to the manager the night before, so it should be getting fixed today or tomorrow), but again, a very good workout. Home again for an AWESOME shower (that's the best thing about working out--the subsequent shower feels SO good), breakfast, and off to work, and here I am!
I'm hoping to start my workouts earlier, about 6:30, in hopes of Sarah joining me, and Joe and Branden if they don't have to leave for work super-early. However, I'm happy to be doing them at all at this point.
Okay, so BBQ. We bought an awesome gas grill before Branden got sick, and we finally put it together on Monday. We decided to host a BBQ on Tuesday before D&D since B & I had the day off; so we grilled up some burgers, brats, and veggie burgers. Carlie brought corn on the cob and Rachel brought grapes and strawberries, and we had ourselves a bit of a feast. Overall, a roaring success!!! I am VERY happy with our grill. The grill bits are removeable porcelain-covered steel with a removeable grease trap, so it was relatively easy to clean in the sink with a scrubby. So much fun!
I believe it was that night that Squish caught a mouse-thing out on the patio. It didn't look like a pet store mouse, more like a mouse-sized gerbil; it had a short furry tail rather than a long pink tail. But I think that might be what wild mice look like. Anyway, he's getting to be quite the rodent-killer. However, with every rodent-kill he scores, he goes out and tries to pick fights with bigger cats.
I had decided that the way he interacts with strange cats was natural territory-marking and that if he could establish his territory with a given cat, he may then be able to be playmates with the cat. So, my new policy had been, only if there are two cats yowling at each other (meaning that the other cat yowls back) would I go out and break it up. The second cat yowling would mean that the second cat did not accept Squish's assertion of territory and was willing to fight about it; staying quiet means they don't want to contest it. Last night, while I was out working out, apparently Squish tried to pick a fight with an "enormous" black cat, and that cat was having none of his posturing. Branden broke it up, whew.
So... anyway. That's about it for now. I love you guys!
First off, my tooth-related New Month Resolution is holding up under pressure. Haven't missed any days in the Month of September so far. My teeth are singing, and that's awesome.
The New Month Resolution regarding working out hasn't been so easy to uphold. First day of workout was last Friday; Saturday I had to Wii Fit instead of going to the gym and while that's good, it's not AS good. Sunday I had a nice 70-minute bike ride, which definitely counted, Monday we cleaned for 5 hours and I called that a workout. Tuesday I didn't do anything physical because I had the infusion and then D&D... and BBQ, but let me get to that in a sec.
But Wednesday... ah Wednesday. I had made (tentative?) plans with Shad to work out that evening, but I know that Shad can be flakey so I was planning on working out that morning. However, I didn't get myself out of bed in time for that. Happily, Shad was as good as his word and showed up at about 6:30 for our workout, only to find out that his cat had peed on his workout bag!!! Ugh!!! But the in-unit washer/dryer to the rescue... a mere hour and a half later his clothes were washed, dried, unstinky and ready to go, so we headed over to the rec center. The machine that I used was a wee bit broken (crossramp couldn't be raised/lowered), but it was a great workout anyway. Afterwards, we staggered back home and watched Branden play video games for a while, then had dinner together. All in all, a very fun night.
This morning, I got up at 7:15 (should have been out the door by then, but better late than never) and headed over to the rec center again. Sadly, I had to use the broken elliptical machine again (but I had reported it to the manager the night before, so it should be getting fixed today or tomorrow), but again, a very good workout. Home again for an AWESOME shower (that's the best thing about working out--the subsequent shower feels SO good), breakfast, and off to work, and here I am!
I'm hoping to start my workouts earlier, about 6:30, in hopes of Sarah joining me, and Joe and Branden if they don't have to leave for work super-early. However, I'm happy to be doing them at all at this point.
Okay, so BBQ. We bought an awesome gas grill before Branden got sick, and we finally put it together on Monday. We decided to host a BBQ on Tuesday before D&D since B & I had the day off; so we grilled up some burgers, brats, and veggie burgers. Carlie brought corn on the cob and Rachel brought grapes and strawberries, and we had ourselves a bit of a feast. Overall, a roaring success!!! I am VERY happy with our grill. The grill bits are removeable porcelain-covered steel with a removeable grease trap, so it was relatively easy to clean in the sink with a scrubby. So much fun!
I believe it was that night that Squish caught a mouse-thing out on the patio. It didn't look like a pet store mouse, more like a mouse-sized gerbil; it had a short furry tail rather than a long pink tail. But I think that might be what wild mice look like. Anyway, he's getting to be quite the rodent-killer. However, with every rodent-kill he scores, he goes out and tries to pick fights with bigger cats.
I had decided that the way he interacts with strange cats was natural territory-marking and that if he could establish his territory with a given cat, he may then be able to be playmates with the cat. So, my new policy had been, only if there are two cats yowling at each other (meaning that the other cat yowls back) would I go out and break it up. The second cat yowling would mean that the second cat did not accept Squish's assertion of territory and was willing to fight about it; staying quiet means they don't want to contest it. Last night, while I was out working out, apparently Squish tried to pick a fight with an "enormous" black cat, and that cat was having none of his posturing. Branden broke it up, whew.
So... anyway. That's about it for now. I love you guys!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Life and more life! Not as awesome as Cody, but...
Some possible exciting MS news: Scientists reversed MS in mice. Here and here. Sounds like research is still years away from even trying this on humans, and it says it's only effective while MS is in its earliest stages, but you never know what the future may bring...
Also, more MS/health news.
I've had 7 infusions so far, 5 more to go (the next is on September 8) before going off Tysabri in order to ensure that PML does not infest my brainmeats and turn me into a superhero with x-ray vision. I spoke with Dr. Vollmer about this exciting (?) new transition this past Monday the 24th of August. For the last 3 months of the treatment, I'm going to be overlapping Tysabri and Copaxone in order to avoid a "rebound" effect from going off of Tysabri. In addition, the good Doctor said that there is no problem with going off Tysabri and then going back on it at some point later in life; meaning, the body doesn't build up a resistance to it. Also, the negative effect that I felt from Copaxone is apparently part of how the drug works, and is one of the reasons some people go off of it; the injection sites were so itchy, for me, that I would unconsciously itch deep bruises into my legs and arms. It is an allergic reaction that is part of its effectiveness. I don't know; maybe I can take benedryl concurrently with my injection to lower the effects, or maybe I'm doomed! Doomed to a life of unending itchyness!
By the way, don't try to read patient reviews of MS medication. It makes me want to move into a cave and just let the disease take me because so many people have had such bad reactions... Anyway.
So, everything's going great in our new apartment. It's close enough to being "complete" that we've gotten pretty behind on putting in the finishing touches--hanging pictures, putting the last few things away, etc. Every week we make plans to finish it up but every week something comes up. It doesn't help that the only day off we have together is Sunday. But Eventually, We Will Prevail.
Noah, I'm starting to use the shampoo that you and Cici got me for my birthday tomorrow (I wanted to finish the stuff I was using before switching) and I'll keep you updated on how awesome it is. Though the bottles are so small I may actually end up saving them for travel shampoos. =)
In other news, everything's going well with Branden's job. It's demanded some late nights from him recently, but it's the good kind of working late. He's going to be getting a promotion/raise after they complete the project they're on, so that's exciting.
Branden's brothers are safely in Longmont. Their new apartment is very cute, sort of like a mini-Horizons. The apartment is very small but nicely designed, with in-unit washer dryer and on-site workout facilities, very exciting. I'm so happy those guys are on their feet again and doing well.
Branden and I went up to Placerville, CA a few weekends ago to visit his grandparents. His grandpa is in bad shape; they're pretty sure he has Parkinson's though he doesn't have the classic Parkinson's symptoms. He's not able to walk anymore (really, not able to move at all without assistance), so he stays in his hospital bed all day, except when the nurses come to bathe him. He's pretty demented as well. Branden's grandma spends all day in the house, trying to feed him and make sure he's comfortable. Her life is very focused now, and she doesn't have anything to say that doesn't have to do with Grandpa and his illness, so being there was very hard for me. I only went into Grandpa's room once, but I couldn't stand to see the state he was in, so I left after just a few seconds. It was really sad, more than anything else, so it was probably a good thing that Grandma shooed us out of the house more of the time than we were in it, to go to Lake Tahoe and Sacramento. Those parts were fun.
Work's going fine, nothing really to report there. Squish and Tayler are now allowed out of the house on their own; Squish likes going out at all times of day but Tayler only wants to go out after dark. Last Saturday, Squish killed a bunny on our balcony--a baby bunny, about the size of a hamburger. I heard a weird thump and went to open the door, and there was Squish and the bunny, who was on its side kicking itself around in a circle. We think Squish must have broken its back because we didn't see any blood. It died pretty fast and we cleaned it up; it was with a heavy heart that I named Squish "mighty hunter" and gave him an admonishment to only kill things he wanted to eat. I don't think he got it.
Pretty much every night since then I've had to go out and collect Squish at about 10pm because I hear him yodeling, which is the sound he makes when he's establishing his territory to another cat or similarly large animal that he hesitates to attack outright. Every time I've gone out to get him, he seems pretty thankful that I was able to remove him from the situation without hurting his pride. Silly cat. If he doesn't want to fight, he should be less territorial.
My workout routine has been sporadic at best because I seem to have misplaced my iPod. I don't like working out without it =(
Anyway, that's about all I have to say for now. I love you guys! Hope everything's awesome forever!
Also, more MS/health news.
I've had 7 infusions so far, 5 more to go (the next is on September 8) before going off Tysabri in order to ensure that PML does not infest my brainmeats and turn me into a superhero with x-ray vision. I spoke with Dr. Vollmer about this exciting (?) new transition this past Monday the 24th of August. For the last 3 months of the treatment, I'm going to be overlapping Tysabri and Copaxone in order to avoid a "rebound" effect from going off of Tysabri. In addition, the good Doctor said that there is no problem with going off Tysabri and then going back on it at some point later in life; meaning, the body doesn't build up a resistance to it. Also, the negative effect that I felt from Copaxone is apparently part of how the drug works, and is one of the reasons some people go off of it; the injection sites were so itchy, for me, that I would unconsciously itch deep bruises into my legs and arms. It is an allergic reaction that is part of its effectiveness. I don't know; maybe I can take benedryl concurrently with my injection to lower the effects, or maybe I'm doomed! Doomed to a life of unending itchyness!
By the way, don't try to read patient reviews of MS medication. It makes me want to move into a cave and just let the disease take me because so many people have had such bad reactions... Anyway.
So, everything's going great in our new apartment. It's close enough to being "complete" that we've gotten pretty behind on putting in the finishing touches--hanging pictures, putting the last few things away, etc. Every week we make plans to finish it up but every week something comes up. It doesn't help that the only day off we have together is Sunday. But Eventually, We Will Prevail.
Noah, I'm starting to use the shampoo that you and Cici got me for my birthday tomorrow (I wanted to finish the stuff I was using before switching) and I'll keep you updated on how awesome it is. Though the bottles are so small I may actually end up saving them for travel shampoos. =)
In other news, everything's going well with Branden's job. It's demanded some late nights from him recently, but it's the good kind of working late. He's going to be getting a promotion/raise after they complete the project they're on, so that's exciting.
Branden's brothers are safely in Longmont. Their new apartment is very cute, sort of like a mini-Horizons. The apartment is very small but nicely designed, with in-unit washer dryer and on-site workout facilities, very exciting. I'm so happy those guys are on their feet again and doing well.
Branden and I went up to Placerville, CA a few weekends ago to visit his grandparents. His grandpa is in bad shape; they're pretty sure he has Parkinson's though he doesn't have the classic Parkinson's symptoms. He's not able to walk anymore (really, not able to move at all without assistance), so he stays in his hospital bed all day, except when the nurses come to bathe him. He's pretty demented as well. Branden's grandma spends all day in the house, trying to feed him and make sure he's comfortable. Her life is very focused now, and she doesn't have anything to say that doesn't have to do with Grandpa and his illness, so being there was very hard for me. I only went into Grandpa's room once, but I couldn't stand to see the state he was in, so I left after just a few seconds. It was really sad, more than anything else, so it was probably a good thing that Grandma shooed us out of the house more of the time than we were in it, to go to Lake Tahoe and Sacramento. Those parts were fun.
Work's going fine, nothing really to report there. Squish and Tayler are now allowed out of the house on their own; Squish likes going out at all times of day but Tayler only wants to go out after dark. Last Saturday, Squish killed a bunny on our balcony--a baby bunny, about the size of a hamburger. I heard a weird thump and went to open the door, and there was Squish and the bunny, who was on its side kicking itself around in a circle. We think Squish must have broken its back because we didn't see any blood. It died pretty fast and we cleaned it up; it was with a heavy heart that I named Squish "mighty hunter" and gave him an admonishment to only kill things he wanted to eat. I don't think he got it.
Pretty much every night since then I've had to go out and collect Squish at about 10pm because I hear him yodeling, which is the sound he makes when he's establishing his territory to another cat or similarly large animal that he hesitates to attack outright. Every time I've gone out to get him, he seems pretty thankful that I was able to remove him from the situation without hurting his pride. Silly cat. If he doesn't want to fight, he should be less territorial.
My workout routine has been sporadic at best because I seem to have misplaced my iPod. I don't like working out without it =(
Anyway, that's about all I have to say for now. I love you guys! Hope everything's awesome forever!
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