Huh

We got a condolence card from the vet we took Sugar to Monday morning. Huh. I wonder how they knew?

*A nice aside; they put the Rainbow Bridge poem in the card.

Squirrels!

So, no rat post today. Instead, cute squirrels!

J and I went to Portland to visit a friend and on the way back we stopped at a rest area we had never stopped at before. Pulling into parking place, we noticed there were tons of squirrels running around on the ground, laying in the grass and in general very comfortable with people.

We sat watching them for a minute, until another car pulled up alongside us. As we watched those people get out of the car they were bombarded with squirrels looking for a free handout. It was too cute!

I went to the concession stand and got some shelled peanuts to feed them. They proceeded to mob J and I, and it was great. They were so much fun. They acted so much like ratties. They were very playful, very competitive for the peanuts and did all sorts of cute acrobatics to get their treats. I got some good pictures, and thought I'd share them with you.

Gimmie!

I will sit on your foot until you feed me! (Which he later did.)

Off Topic, But Neat

So, did any of you catch the lunar eclipse? We did, and I tried to get a photo/video of it, but it was too far away and all my pictures came out black. :( If I can find one online somewhere I'll post it.

However, it was especially cool to see the eclipse tonight because early yesterday morning we had a meteor get caught on camera as it came to Earth. It was very neat, and here's the link if you'd like to see it for yourself (note: the links are in a teeny box under the title): http://www.tri-cityherald.com/901/story/95542.html

It's been a busy astronomical week here in Eastern Washington.

November 6

Ratatouille comes to DVD. And I will drag J there to purchase it. :)

I Feel I Should Write Something...

Today I'm really missing my ratties. I'm not sure why, but I've had the urge to go to the pet store and at least cuddle and play with them. When I feel this way, I don't trust that I can come home without several. I have no self control when cute rats are involved.

In other news, it seems the weather has indeed turned to winter or at least late fall. It's very cold in the mornings, complete with seeing-your-breath and foggy, misty windows on the car in the morning. It was still nice and warm last weekend, and then BAM! Cold, rainy, cloudy, windy weather landed squarely in our laps.

I guess it's time to get the sweaters out.

I've also got a rant. It's a short one, though. I have always ordered from catalogs or online. For many, many years I have done this. I have gotten used to the fact that a lot of the time stuff doesn't look the same in person as it does in the pictures (this is most true with clothing). I understand this. But it seems like lately the clothes are terrible when I get them. This is stuff I wouldn't even look at twice in the store. If they would mention some of these descriptive factors, I wouldn't be so annoyed. Like the coat I got today. It would have really helped if they said it was a cropped (!) peacoat. I assumed it was hip-length, like most peacoats.

Anyway, that was my lame rant.

Wild, Wild Pacific Northwest

One of the things I really like about living up here in the PN is the wildlife in my particular town. We have lots of birds, squirrels, skunks, etc. I enjoy watching the baby quails grow up (they've just come out of their nests and are learning to fly short distances. Cute!). I like watching the neighborhood cat stalk the squirrels (he's too timid to really do much else).

Yesterday as I was watering our back 40, I realized I was nose to nose with this little guy and he wasn't even intimidated by me. He just looked at me. So I went in the house, got the camera, and lo and behold, when I came back he was still there. So I got some pictures of him. This one is my favorite.


 

 

 

 

J says he's giving me "the stink eye".

I Have Been Looking

for a new rat. I don't know how serious I am about getting one yet, but I am looking.

World Rat Day

Snuggle your ratties a little more today, because today is World Rat Day!

Rats are amazing pets, as you know, and they are so smart and full of personality. So, take this day to appreciate your ratties a little more and give them a treat or two extra.

Sunday Night

Don't you hate when Sunday night comes around and you haven't gotten anything done over the weekend?

I know I do.

*sigh*

Question

Aside from this post, where I am asking you to comment, do you feel obligated to comment on blogs you read regularly? I was reading about this elsewhere and wondered how my readers felt about it.

Please leave comments with your opinion. :)

No Voice Today

*sigh* I wanted to post an audio post, because there's a lot to catch up on, but guess what? Audioblogger isn't working. Of course. grrrr

Anyway, to update:

The vet now has his office open! yay! Rat Rat is heading over there on Weds. so he can look at her huge lump and see if we are safe to remove it. It's causing her leg to have continual spasms and she's not really able to use it. Otherwise, she's really active, so I don't feel right just letting it take over her little body.

Rat still has 4 lumps. They're getting big, but none are growing as fast as Rat Rats. She just slugs around anyway, so I don't think they impede her too much. ;)

We found a new lump on Coda. Dangit. She's been lump free for 8 months, but now that's over.

Annnndddd....*insert drumroll*.....we're looking at a house tonight! yay! Hopefully we'll be able to get out of this hellhole apartment in a month or so. Please cross your fingers for us (and the rats) that this will work out.

K, I think that's about it for now. If anything else exciting happens, you'll hear about here. Take care everyone.

(And Dari, we're hoping your son is ok.)

Happy Weekend!

I'm behind on work, so I'll have to catch up over the weekend. However, I hope this finds you all well and happy this weekend.

Rat hugs to all! :)

For Sham

So, Sham wanted to know what exactly a "luminaria" is.

A luminaria is a traditional Mexican/Southwestern Hispanic decoration. We have a large Catholic population here, and the luminarias are part of their Christmas tradition. They are to symbolize the walk to the baby Jesus's birth in the Bethlehem manger. Actually, they are to light the way. They are an adaptation of "faralitos" which are translated to "little bonfires".

Essentially, luminarias are to light the way to Jesus. Only done at Christmas, and done by many people who don't get the symbolism. They have become more of a "southwestern" symbol rather than a religious symbol.

How Do I Make Them?

I'm glad you asked. It's a long and tedious process, so get out your pencils and your check book. You will need:

1. Brown paper lunch sacks
2. Sand...lots of sand
3. Votive candles (Don't waste money on scented ones)
4. Matches

Now, get your brown paper bag in your lap. Fold between a 1/2 inch and an inch down and outward at the top of the bag all the way around. Now fold it over again once more. Make sure the crease is crisp and flat. You can either store your bags flat until you are ready to use them, or begin filling them now.

Next, put a trowel full of sand into the bag. This will fill it about 2-3 inches.

Then nestle a votive securely into the sand, about 1/3 the way up the candle. (You've gotta leave plenty of room for them to burn down. They need to burn about 4 hours or so.)

Arrange the luminarias in whatever design you would like. They usually are placed along both sides of driveways, walkways, sidewalks, on rooftops, randomly on the lawn, on the porch, whatever design you would like.

And finally, the hard part. Lighting the luminarias without setting the bag on fire. Firestarter lighters and extra long matches work.

That's it! Ok, I know it wasn't expensive, but it is time consuming. However, it's usually worth it. Luminarias give off a soft candlelight glow and are really ethereal. Wonderful and Christmassy.







A Luminaria

Monday, Monday

I was just sitting here and thinking...

Ever realize how many songs reference Monday?

It's weird how many people wrote lyrics with Monday being part of the topic. I wonder why?

I have an amazingly busy day today, so I'm off to take care of business.

Please leave your Monday thoughts! :)

Sleepy Weekend

Still sick, but getting better. :) Busy with "work" stuff. The website is in a whole heap of mess right now and am trying hard to get it fixed fast. *stressed*

Here's a cute rat pic for your enjoyment.




Think she'll find anything valuable??

Winter Weather

Well, our first day of real winter weather is here. It's freezing. The rats and I are freezing. Our heat hasn't been turned on yet.

I've got the ratties in the warmest room in the house with a heater aimed at them. For the rest of the house, I've got the oven open and on 350 degrees.

*shivers*

It's damn cold today.

Haven't Been Around

I know everyone's sick of Cleo's old-ass post. I'm sorry. I just didn't (and still don't) feel much up to writing about my other girls. But I am going to get back into the swing of things this week.

You see, I thought I was ready, and then I came across some beautifully cute and serene pics of Cleo and Coda the day before we lost her. So, back to square one. But, I'm going to put them up soon, because they truly are wonderful.

I'm super busy with work, and of course with the increasing problems of my older girls, and the fact my vet STILL isn't up and running. Not that it's a big deal, but I'd just much rather take the girls to him instead. I'm anxious. Anxious, anxious, anxious.

In good news, the hubby and I went on a clothing splurge this weekend, and spent nearly $500! I'm finally down to a size 8 pant (in misses/juniors) so it was time to get rid of the too-big stuff.

Curious about my weight loss? Three years ago I was at my largest- 185 pounds, size 16 (women's).

Two years ago- 160 pounds, size 12 (women's).

Last year- 165 pounds, size 12 (women's).

Now- 143 pounds, size 8.

How did I do it? I run 6-7 miles a night on the elliptical and do circuit training with weights. I started out exercising 6 nights a week. Now I exercise 4. And I had to learn to eat more calories. I need almost 2,000 calories a day to stay alive. I was barely getting 1,200 (a combination of too much low-fat food and the fact I can't eat much at all in a day). Getting my calories up there (yay for chocolate malts and cheese fries!) helped my body be more efficient. It sounds weird, but I have to fit fat into my diet! Of course, I don't eat a whole bunch, cause I can't digest it. But that's another story. :)

My goal is:

135 pounds (my high school weight), size 6.

I plan on reaching that by Christmas. Of course, I don't want to lose any more if it means I'm going to look like a twig. But if I do and I look better, yay!

So, that's what I've been doing. Please continue the regular visits as I promise I will be posting more often. Thanks for all the love, thoughts and kindness during our unexpected sadness. It means the world to us.

Saturday Fun

So, I don't know if you guys noticed this, but I'm trying really hard to make a new post every day. I think I'm doing pretty well at it. :)

Today we've got a lot going on. J's group at work is having a BBQ, so I've got to make pounds of potato salad for that. Plus there's the usual housecleaning and order filling and all that goes on in our pad.

I'll post pics once Blogger is up and running again. Have a safe Saturday!

The Longest Yard

We went and saw this movie last night...as you probably know, it's a remake of the same name from the 1970's, both of which Burt Reynolds was cast in.

It was great! I laughed throughout it. I had a great time. Adam Sandler and Chris Rock make a formidible comedy team. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

One interesting thing happened during the movie. The gal next to us brought in her own bottled soda, and when she opened it, it sprayed all over her and me! Fun. At least my pants dried. I, personally, would have died from embarrassment. As it was, I just had sticky, wet pants for awhile.

Off to clean the cage and other miscellaneous Sunday humdrums.

Sometimes...

I get frustrated that I don't have more to write about. I try to keep this strictly about the rats, because that is why I started it. Y'know, so I don't keep boring people I see everyday with my "rat stories." Sometimes, though, I just don't have anything to say.

Which is not necessarily a bad thing. The rats are happy, cute, doing rat-things. That, to me, is a far better thing than if they were to be "exciting" and always sick, at the vet's office, taking meds, ad infinitum.

I mostly just feel I let my readers down. I don't have such a much to say some weeks, and they come to see if I've written anything, and I haven't. *sigh*

In other news... I burned the absolute crap out of my left index finger today. I was making brekkie for J and I was mixing flour into hot oil for the chile sauce. (Did I mention I am an amazing cook? Hence J's 30 added pounds in the 2 years we've been married. lol) Anyway, the flour was clumping on the spatula, and not staying in the pan, where it should have been. I didn't realize how hot it had gotten and I wiped it off with my finger!

Stupid? Yes.
Painful? Amazingly Yes.
Learning Experience? Yes, Yes.

I managed to finish breakfast, while soaking my hand in a bowl of ice water. I had to go to the bank before J went to work, so off I go with my ice in a baggie wrapped around my hand. Miserable drive.

I spent the rest of the day, a full 8 hours I could have been working, with my left hand in a bowl of ice water or getting aloe vera smeared on it. I didn't get a danged thing done. It's hard to type with a hand whose nerves literally scream in fiery agony every single time it's removed from its icy confines.

I'm going to have a miserable blister there tomorrow. Ouch, ouch, ouch. Sometimes, life really belts me a good one. Upside the head no less! ;)

In other *other* news... we're embarking on a fantastically huge project this weekend. Yes, we, two of the most lazy people on Earth, are going to get off our duffs and seal our floors! Our wood floors have never been sealed, so at least we don't have to strip them, but we have to do everything else. urgh.

Am I looking forward to it? Nope.
Does it have to be done? Yep.
Are you willing to do it for me? Why not???

And that's about it for tonight. But stay around...I'm going to surprise you with something. It's going to be a lot of fun, and I need your help!

Stay tuned...