D.R.’s Neighborhood

I know I've been neglecting my blog lately and thanks if you're still checking to see if I've posted anything new lately.  My life has been so crazy busy over the holidays.  I saw a lot of Santa in the last month - both in person on photo shoots and all the editing that I had to do in my computer, so while I do LOVE Santa, I was happy not to put out my collection of 100 Santa figurines this year.  I'd simply had enough of the jolly red man.  And the great thing about not putting them out was that I didn't have to put them away!  We had a very low-key Christmas this year and it was nice, but I'm still behind.  I haven't sent out my cards yet and it's not like I can save them for next year since they are pictures of my kids with the year 2009 printed right on them, so it's just one more thing for my to-do list. 

I'm also terribly behind on picture editing - here's one that I took before Christmas that I've been meaning to take care of.  This sweetie is living at PetSmart now and would desperately like to go to a real home because he finds PetSmart to be a bit overwhelming.  I took this picture for his foster mom and haven't had time to get it to her. 

!c

I've been enjoying my new job at Muddpuppies.  I like being able to use all the things I've learned about pets and be able to help people solve problems and make their pets happier and healthier.  I'm also learning a lot and finding myself being more open to alternative treatments.  This is a huge step for me because I've been so rooted in "western science".  Today at work I learned about a potential treatment for a couple of the cats here - if it works I'll be doing cartwheels and writing all about it.  Another thing I love about my new job is kittens.  We still have all 4 kittens there and I get to do my work while carrying a kitten around the store.  Talk about stress relief!

I had a couple of adoptions recently, plus a couple of returns so I haven't gotten too far ahead yet, but I'm making progress in placing cats.  I've had a couple of breakthroughs lately that make me hopeful that these guys can eventually leave my house. 

!remmie

 Remmie (my orange-tabby manx) is super shy.  Sometimes I can go weeks without him letting me touch him.  I've been working on building his trust again and when I'm sneaky I can find him snuggled up sleeping and start petting him before he realizes what's going on.  He wants to dart away at first, but then remembers that he used to like this and maybe he still does.  I had a moment of triumph when I was walking and almost tripped over a cat, but when I looked down it was Remmie running around my legs for attention!  He still doesn't want to be picked up and only wants petting on his terms, but I'm so excited that he likes people again.  He's lucky that I understand him, the hard part has always been finding someone else willing to take the time to get to know him and make him feel comfortable.

Hmm, I have 2 stories that segway from there, but I'm not sure which one to tell first. 

Speaking of special people (and I wish we could clone them!) there is a woman who has adopted from me before and has taken shy cats.  She wants another "problem child" and is very interested in my Ozzie (the biter).  I'm so excited!  The thing about Ozzie is that if you understand him, he doesn't bite, but if you make him feel anxious or overstimulated, he feels powerless and will chomp down really fast and hard.  A lot of people "like cats" but he needs someone who truly "gets cats".

Another cat that I've been working with is Koko.  He is on a special diet for irritable bowel syndrome and doing quite well.  The unfortunate thing is that Koko hasn't had a normal upbringing.  He spent most of his kittenhood in a cage since he had severe icky poopy.  This has left him fearful of big, open spaces and he doesn't transition well.  So I've taken steps to work with him on this.  We tried another foster home about a year ago and he just hid under the bed and his problem came back.  So I switched him to Prowl and it worked for him.  So I moved him into my big walk-in cage so that he could get used to being around feet and full body contact.  Then I moved him upstairs to a bathroom.  It took awhile for him to feel comfortable in there.  Everytime that I'd open the door, he'd fly back into the cat carrier and cower until I called him a silly kitty.  Then he'd come running out and leap into my arms.  When he felt more comfortable, I opened the bathroom door to give him access to the bedroom.  It took him two weeks to come out of the bathroom and then he went and hid in the closet.  He hid in the back overnight until I forced him out - but he was glad to get to the litterbox and I was really glad that he'd held it all night.  In a couple of weeks he had mastered living in the bedroom and started meeting me at the door.

!koko4

He still acted a bit off when we'd go to PetSmart for adoption days, so I tried figuring out what to do to bring him out of his shell a bit more.  So I employed my neighbor.  She also has a cat with IBS, so they can share food.  I warned her of the shyness and we were prepared for a frightened cat to cower in her bathroom.  Cats like to prove you wrong and in this case I was thrilled!  Koko was eager to explore everywhere!  In the half hour that I spent over there during his intro, he'd made a thorough examination of the master bedroom and bath and even tried out the new litterbox.  Early reports are that the two cats are getting along well enough. 

We'll see how this goes and hopefully each transition that he's making will help him be prepared for a forever home.  He's such a sweet, silly boy.  I hope that someone falls in love with him soon!

Oh, meh....

Sigh

The house is way back there....

Evil Cat From Outer Space (Gif)

Maybe this wasn't the greatest of ideas.  But...who knew that the evil cat from outer space would appear right when I hit the fireworks.

Wednesday's Beauty 01/06/2010

With only a filmy orange blouse to wear, this woman positions herself in a sensuous manner.  Her skin tone is lovely, and her long hair is allows for other cover-up photos to be taken.

Tough Foreign Smoking Rules

In this country, WE decide when you can smoke. Oops, did we get a little water in your eye?  Take the punishment.....and never forget the stinging pain of water!  We do not like outdoor smokers. 

Canine Memorial

This is a memorial to all the guard dogs in the military who lost their lives while on duty.  So touching with how the military gentleman is holding his dog, looking down upon him while placing his hand on its head.  They are friends...more so, they have love and respect for one another. 

Step On A Crack....

...and break your mother's back.

These two women seem to be purposely stepping on the cracks.  Maybe they don't like their mothers??  Lol.  It's so nice to see grown women playing and laughing like children, and not being inhibited so as to keep them from wrapping their arms around each other.  I hope their entire day was full of smiles and laughter.

Balancing Act

1 comment

If a slab of rock falls into the ocean when no one is around, will it make a sound?  Lol.  Just a little variation on the old "if a tree falls in the forest" question.  This site is located in the province of New Brunswick, Canada.

I got my rebuilt computer back this afternoon, and it's going to take me ages to get everything arranged the way I like it again.

I tried to install some fonts, but it won't let me because apparently I don't have correct security permissions for it to register them to the Type 1 Fonts registry (whatever that may be).

That's fine. I probably don't need most of them anyway.

But how do I get it to STOP trying to register them? I've clicked "OK" and "Cancel" eleventy-seven times each, and still every time I go into the Fonts directory, it takes me through each one of them again to tell me it can't install them.

I can't delete the fonts, because they don't show up in the directory.

Halp!