I'm flying to Chicago for a conference in two weeks, & staying in a hotel that's only about 15 minutes from Midway Airport.
So, of course, the purchasing office booked me into O'Hare International, which is on the other side of the freakin' city! And since it's a non-refundable ticket, I'm stuck with it.
There is plenty of time, so that's not an issue; it's just a pain in my tookus!
25 November 2003
30 October 2003
party night
They must have been hard at it while we were asleep last night. I awoke to find one mouse running around the bathtub, where apparently he had been put to be used as a snack later, and the wings and feathers of at least one bird all around the living room and kitchen!
You'd think we don't feed them at all. I do wonder, though, if the Calico isn't trying to be nice by bringing in food for Blackjack. He is too young to hunt on his own, after all, and has already consumed at least one mouse!
You'd think we don't feed them at all. I do wonder, though, if the Calico isn't trying to be nice by bringing in food for Blackjack. He is too young to hunt on his own, after all, and has already consumed at least one mouse!
24 October 2003
16 October 2003
What Breed?
There is some speculation after looking at BlackJack that maybe he is a Jack-Russell | Dachsund mix. I can see that, I guess.
He's got a good sniffer, loves to dig, and has already eaten at least one mouse!
I was surprised to find that Jack Russell Terriers are named after John Russell... . In what universe did someone decide that Jack is short for John?!
He's got a good sniffer, loves to dig, and has already eaten at least one mouse!
I was surprised to find that Jack Russell Terriers are named after John Russell... . In what universe did someone decide that Jack is short for John?!
Meet BlackJack!
These are a few quick pics of BlackJack, the newest member of our household.
He's a dachsund mix, weighing in at 7 pounds -- he's 14 weeks old now -- that we found hiding behind his water bowl at the County pound. I can't believe that anyone would leave such a sweet shy boy.
He's a sweetie, though the cats aren't convinced of it just yet!
He got the name because when I called the vet for his first appointment they asked if he had a name. When I said, "No", they said they'd just add him to our file... and that he was number 21 for us!
He's a dachsund mix, weighing in at 7 pounds -- he's 14 weeks old now -- that we found hiding behind his water bowl at the County pound. I can't believe that anyone would leave such a sweet shy boy.
He's a sweetie, though the cats aren't convinced of it just yet!
He got the name because when I called the vet for his first appointment they asked if he had a name. When I said, "No", they said they'd just add him to our file... and that he was number 21 for us!
Somewhere along the way, the pictures got moved/lost... sorry!
15 October 2003
suspicious mail
Today in the mailbox that holds messages caught by my spam filter is this one:
Hello,
If you hate Spam like I do, you owe it to your self (sic) to try this program, and forward this email to all of your friends who also hate Spam or as many people possible.
26 September 2003
26 August 2003
20 August 2003
Safety first...
City chiefs to monitor 'dominatrix' workshops.
Maybe it will be more exciting for them to be watched while someone is spanking them?
Maybe it will be more exciting for them to be watched while someone is spanking them?
18 August 2003
very sad
Some days it can suck to be an animal lover, ya know?
And today is one of those days.
Last night our very sweet and youngest orange kitten, bear,
managed to get out in the road and get hit by a car going too fast for this residential area.
Every year we find a stray or two and find homes for them.
And sometimes either my wife or I just get taken with one and have to keep them.
This is just what happened with Bear, so named because as little as he was at first, he would stand up on his hind legs like a bear to try and look ferocious to the much larger adults in the house.
My wife is crazy in love with him, and is just beside herself with grief, and it's so hard to close my eyes and not see it happening all over again. And trying not to ask that question of ourselves, "What could we have done to stop it?"
I'm sure there are plenty of different answers, but we know that none of them will bring him back to us.
We have been blessed with wonderful companions since we've known each other, and I do know that Bear is getting a nice bath from Solomon and that they both will watch over us and the rest of their friends here.
His best buddy, Stanley, has been looking for him some today, as has Mushin, who brought him fresh food from outside to eat :-)
We've given them, and us, homeopathic remedies to help with the loss of our guy, and we know that we'll recover over time.
When they're growing up, time seems to go too fast, but when they're gone, everything seems to drag so slowly, doesn't it?
And today is one of those days.
Last night our very sweet and youngest orange kitten, bear,
managed to get out in the road and get hit by a car going too fast for this residential area.
Every year we find a stray or two and find homes for them.
And sometimes either my wife or I just get taken with one and have to keep them.
This is just what happened with Bear, so named because as little as he was at first, he would stand up on his hind legs like a bear to try and look ferocious to the much larger adults in the house.
My wife is crazy in love with him, and is just beside herself with grief, and it's so hard to close my eyes and not see it happening all over again. And trying not to ask that question of ourselves, "What could we have done to stop it?"
I'm sure there are plenty of different answers, but we know that none of them will bring him back to us.
We have been blessed with wonderful companions since we've known each other, and I do know that Bear is getting a nice bath from Solomon and that they both will watch over us and the rest of their friends here.
His best buddy, Stanley, has been looking for him some today, as has Mushin, who brought him fresh food from outside to eat :-)
We've given them, and us, homeopathic remedies to help with the loss of our guy, and we know that we'll recover over time.
When they're growing up, time seems to go too fast, but when they're gone, everything seems to drag so slowly, doesn't it?
10 August 2003
catching up
My wife got back from her trip to Kauai on Thursday, & I'm getting a break from "catching up" .
29 July 2003
whose vacation?
Well, my wife is off on a ten day trip with her two sisters and their mom for Mom's birthday... to Hawaii, no less, leaving me home to have a little quiet time... .
People ask if I'm upset about not going, & I explain that though I like her family, after a few days on a small island with them (Kauai) it would be not be a fun time anymore.
All the guys who understand this, raise your hands (after loudly proclaiming to your spouse, "That guy must be crazy for not enjoying his in-laws more!")
People ask if I'm upset about not going, & I explain that though I like her family, after a few days on a small island with them (Kauai) it would be not be a fun time anymore.
All the guys who understand this, raise your hands (after loudly proclaiming to your spouse, "That guy must be crazy for not enjoying his in-laws more!")
23 July 2003
Blondes aren't stereotypical... are they?
Last week, I sent this very typical blonde computer joke to the blonde girls in our office after receivng it from a very blonde friend of mine.
As I was leaving the office that afternoon, one of them was going out across the front parking lot with me, berating me about the joke. Then she stopped, looked around, and said,"Oh, I parked behind the building today.... . Don't you dare tell anyone!"
Hee!
A blonde goes into a curtain store and says to the salesman, "I would
like a pink curtain the size of my computer screen".
"But madam" says the salesman "computers do not have curtains."
"Oh, hellooooo" says the blonde "I've got Windows!"
As I was leaving the office that afternoon, one of them was going out across the front parking lot with me, berating me about the joke. Then she stopped, looked around, and said,"Oh, I parked behind the building today.... . Don't you dare tell anyone!"
Hee!
05 July 2003
Happy Birthday Us
Dontcha just love July fourth? Get a couple of nice juicy steaks, fire up the grill, grab a cold beer.............
Then try to figure out where the hell you put that tarp so you can cover the grill in some fashion before the latest freak thunderstorm (not forecasted, thankyou very much).
I just love standing under an umbrella while I cook, don't you?
Then try to figure out where the hell you put that tarp so you can cover the grill in some fashion before the latest freak thunderstorm (not forecasted, thankyou very much).
I just love standing under an umbrella while I cook, don't you?
28 June 2003
How did I get here?
I was looking at my odometer this morning, and realized that in the 6 years that my wife & I have had this car, we've driven almost 90,000 miles, & yet I'm still in the exact same place, doing pretty much the exact same job at the same university.
So what have I gotten out of those 90,000 miles?
And just where the hell did I go?
At thirty cents a miles -- close to what the IRS will give you -- that's $27,000 in driving I've done; $4500 a year, though probably a good bit more than that in reality, taking into account all costs for the vehicle, cheap as it may be.
How many hungry villages would that feed? And to think I used to ride my bike all the time, and only took the car out once a week or so for the larger shopping excursions... .The lack of biking may also explain the expansion of my mid-section, though it's not too bad.
So what have I gotten out of those 90,000 miles?
And just where the hell did I go?
At thirty cents a miles -- close to what the IRS will give you -- that's $27,000 in driving I've done; $4500 a year, though probably a good bit more than that in reality, taking into account all costs for the vehicle, cheap as it may be.
How many hungry villages would that feed? And to think I used to ride my bike all the time, and only took the car out once a week or so for the larger shopping excursions... .The lack of biking may also explain the expansion of my mid-section, though it's not too bad.
25 June 2003
Overheard
Overheard on the sidewalk as I left the coffee shop last night:
Okay, who thinks that these guys need to get a life?
- Geek A, "What would be really cool is if Jar Jar had to fight an Ewok!"
Geek B, "Yeah, preferably in a trash compacter with no convenient way out."
Okay, who thinks that these guys need to get a life?
20 June 2003
House of Killers
A house atop a hill overlooking a rural community in Southwest VA. Who would suspect that living here are four vicious terrors?
For starters, anyone who has seen one of them dragging their hapless prey up the drive & in thru the small door on the porch.
And then they leave the mess for me. Coming home to the remains of their take in meals... feathers, fur, paws, or little bunny heads staring up from the kitchen floor.
Sigh, aren't domestic cats wonderful? A co-worker insists that if they were large enough, house cats would eat the hand that feeds them; which is, of course, why it is a poor idea to have a pet tiger.
No, this blog isn't devoted to the cats who rule our lives, with cute cuddly pictures all over the site, but they wield such influence that they will surely appear when necessary to make sure that they get the credit they are due for shaping our lives.
My wife is a fan of CSI, and I often think how bizarre it would be were a crime to occur in our house and a forensics team had to be called in.
There must be DNA evidence from over a dozen species here and there around the house.
And, yes, we'll be replacing the carpet (soon, I hope) in favor of some nice fake hardwood laminate.
For starters, anyone who has seen one of them dragging their hapless prey up the drive & in thru the small door on the porch.
And then they leave the mess for me. Coming home to the remains of their take in meals... feathers, fur, paws, or little bunny heads staring up from the kitchen floor.
Sigh, aren't domestic cats wonderful? A co-worker insists that if they were large enough, house cats would eat the hand that feeds them; which is, of course, why it is a poor idea to have a pet tiger.
No, this blog isn't devoted to the cats who rule our lives, with cute cuddly pictures all over the site, but they wield such influence that they will surely appear when necessary to make sure that they get the credit they are due for shaping our lives.
My wife is a fan of CSI, and I often think how bizarre it would be were a crime to occur in our house and a forensics team had to be called in.
There must be DNA evidence from over a dozen species here and there around the house.
And, yes, we'll be replacing the carpet (soon, I hope) in favor of some nice fake hardwood laminate.
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