Catloaf

Catloaf
Originally uploaded by chaimann

T bought a digital SLR camera recently. It has a ton of tasty features, but the true test of any camera we own is, "Can I take gratuitous photos of the cat and post them to my blog?" The answer? Yes!

He got the camera for astrophotography, but doesn't have the connector doohickey that will make that possible. And outdoor scenes aren't that charming yet, although confidence is high that spring is approaching. The irises and the tulips are starting to push through, the finches and the cardinals are making a ruckus in the lilac bushes, and Shed Kitty is spending a lot of time sitting in the sun.

News from the backyard

I'm Shed Kitty! Who are you?
Are you Shed Kitty, too?
Then there's a pair of us -- don't tell!
They'd banish us, you know.

--with apologies to Emily Dickinson

As we pulled into the driveway just now, we saw Shed Kitty zipping through the neighbor's yard, headed for high ground. Then we saw Shed Kitty, sitting in the neighbor's yard, staring at us.

This would explain why I think SK looks different at times, and maybe why Sand and I disagree on whether it is a boy or a girl. Runaway SK has a fluffy tail. Sit & Stare SK's coat is more sleek and velvety looking.

Maybe if both SKs are piddling around the groundhog burrows, Chuckie will decide that the neighborhood is going to hell, and will pack up and move out. I like watching Chuckie, but I would also like to put in a little garden this year, and that will be a lot easier without a woodchuck around, mowing down everything that gets in his way.

A bit of snow

A bit of snow
Originally uploaded by chaimann

Despite the recent warming and melting, it is not spring yet.

Daytime moon

Daytime moon
Originally uploaded by chaimann

It's warming up, finally, and I took a short walk this afternoon. It was cloudless and clear, and the gibbous moon was high in the sky.

Finally, some new socks

Jitterbug Socks
Originally uploaded by chaimann

I think I have spent almost a year working on these socks, but I finally buckled down and finished them. Love the yarn (Colinette Jitterbug, Toscano colorway), love the pattern (pinched from a British knitting mag and tweaked to suit), and love that I finally get to use the cute sock blockers I bought at Stitches Midwest last fall.

Houseplant 911!

This pathetic specimen showed up in my office today.


The stalk is nice and green, and tied to a support stick. It has a couple of little sprouts of new growth down low. You can see one of them below the lower tie. The pot is probably about 8 inches.

So... What is it, and what should I do about it?

Why proofreading matters

From this post about the peanut butter recall (emphasis mine):

This month's King Nut peanut butter recall is different. That brand isn't sold directly to the public, so consumers don't have any sitting on their shelves. But on the other hand, it might be contained in some other products in their panties, which could make it even more dangerous.

No frostbite here

We survived the cold snap last week with not too much trauma. Thursday, it was - 18 F when we left for work, and that is not including wind chill. Temperatures like that can make your nose hairs hurt. But today it got up to, and possibly even above, freezing. I wheedled T into taking the car to the car wash. I know it won't stay clean for long, not with all the snow and slush we have around, but it was nice to rinse off the old mud and start on a fresh layer.

Shed Kitty also survived the cold. T took food out to her a couple of times during the worst of it. (I have no idea if SK is a he or a she. I just say "her" because I have not observed any cojones.) Today, we saw her sitting outside, so I took some more food out. She ducked under the shed when I got close, but I didn't get very far away before she came out. She looked at me in that calculating way cats have, and I talked to her. Finally, she finished her risk analysis and concluded, "I'm more hungry than scared." She strode over to the bowl and tucked in, and let me stand there and watch her. We may get to be friends yet.

Best garbage ever

Tonight was my tai chi class, and we were a little late getting home from work. I didn't even go into the house, just dropped T off at home, took the car, and went to my class. But before I left, T pointed out that he had a couple of packages - some gear he had ordered in hopes of being able to revive his broken telescope.

When I came home, I was greeted with this:


And this:


Whatever he got, it was packed in a bunch of six-inch discs of soft pink foam rubber. They are so much cuter, and so much more substantial, than packing peanuts, that it seems a shame to toss them out. But I also can't think of a good reason to keep them.

I haven't been to tai chi for a couple of weeks due to the holidays, and oh, boy, can I tell I am out of the groove. Note to self: Clear out a spot in the basement so you can practice even when there is no class.

Welcome 2009!

Here's to a year in which some of the things that are broken get fixed. (Insert your own list of broken things that need fixin'.)

Last night, I managed to stay up until midnight, barely. The clock said 12:00 when I got into bed.

I am resolutely trying to avoid resolutions, although in my heart I have some. In my heart. Don't go looking for the list here.

I did commit to write some Backyard Astronomy articles for The Piker Press this year, in honor of the International Year of Astronomy 2009. The introductory article went up this week, and I'm planning to write them more or less every other week.

I also got a Twitter account for Backyard Astronomy. You can see the feed over there on the sidebar. The account is BackyardAstro. This introverted geezer doesn't quite know what to make of this social media stuff, but new year, new beginnings, what the heck, give it a whirl. At the very least, I can report when new articles go up.

Ready for her close up

Ready for her close up
Originally uploaded by chaimann

Terry got me a camera for Christmas - a small, pocket-sized one that will be easy to tote around for emergency photo-taking opportunities. For a little thing, it did a nice job catching the details on Katie's fur.

Don't be like the Pixie

The current scoop from Weather Underground:

Temperature -2.2 °F

Windchill:

-19 °F

And the Weather Pixie still isn't wearing a hat or mittens.

She's not going to be so smiley when she learns the hard way what the treatment is for frostbite.

Last night I did my Christmas thang and watched "White Christmas". None of the plot holes have been filled in the 54 years since it was released, but it's still my favorite holiday treat.

Pointless goodies

--Long story short, I had to drive T's truck today, and only made it two blocks before I got stuck in a snowdrift. I had a shovel, but still wasn't able to get unstuck. Good Samaritans came to my rescue. First a guy stopped and helped with the shoveling, and then the guy whose yard I was stuck in came out with some rock salt. Together, they were able to get me going again.

--I'm glad I live in a place where I feel comfortable letting a total stranger get into my vehicle, even with my purse in there, and drive it. Why? Because his truck was nicer than mine, so I figure he had no reason to drive off with it.

--We went to Target tonight, and I bought some wine. The cashier carded me. I probably haven't been carded since before that cashier was born.

--It's cold outside, but it's warm inside.

Your Fourth Sunday of Advent weather

Weather Underground says:

Sunday

Mostly cloudy. Bitterly cold. Windy. Blowing snow. High zero to 5 below. Northwest wind 25 to 30 mph with gusts to around 40 mph. Wind chill readings 20 below to 30 below zero.

That's just the daytime forecast, friends. Better light some extra candles. I'll be curious to see how the Weather Pixie (on the sidebar) dresses for this one.

T is working an extra shift today, and I plan to stay home and knit. Maybe not "knit like the wind", as Brenda Dayne says, but certainly knit against the wind.

Pimp my spouse

T came home last week with a lovely photo of a frozen waterfall in a park near his office. I immediately showed it to Sand over at The Piker Press, and this week it is the Peek of the Week. Nice job, T!

Whew.

Much like my first year of NaNoWriMo, 2002, I lagged mid-month, and had to make a mad dash to catch up at the end. I wrote almost 16,000 words in the last four days. Unlike that year, I had a semblance of a plot, and I wrapped up with The End. (It says "The Minty Fresh End", if you want to be technical about it.)

Chuckie's replacement

Shed kitty
Originally uploaded by chaimann

We haven't seen Chuckie for several months. We suspect he has gone to the great beyond of grounhogdom.

One reason we think he is gone for good is that this cat has started hanging around the burrow entrance. If we make too much noise or get too close, it ducks under the shed and waits for things to settle down. Smart kitty.

Mystery Beret

Mystery Beret
Originally uploaded by chaimann

At least when I avoid writing, I do something productive. As soon as this dries, it will be the Mystery Beret from the Wooly Wormhead Knitalong on Ravelry.

Oh, yeah. I'm doing NaNoWriMo again this year. Have I mentioned that? I'm not doing it well, or quickly, but I'm still soldiering on.

Small, but finished

Baby cap
Originally uploaded by chaimann

Amy's baby arrived a few days early, and the only thing I had ready was this hat. The knitters are thrilled that it's a girl, because some of those girly knit patterns are cute, cute, cute.

I delivered it last night. It's too big for her yet, but it is still adorable.

Crochet is fast

Seraphina
Originally uploaded by chaimann

At least, crochet is fast when you use big yarn, a big hook, and a lacy pattern. I spent less than two weeks on this, counting a couple of false starts and a time-consuming error correction. The yarn is the pretty but annoying Lion Brand Homespun from my stash.

This is probably going to be kept close to my desk for those times when it is a little chilly. Like now. The temperature outside is right at freezing, and it's headed downward tonight. We have crossed the divide from late summer into early winter.