Top 10 things learned in 2006

In no particular order, I look back on experiences and lessons learned in 2006.

1. "You like sunshine and fresh air." This was actually a fortune written on a little slip of paper inside a cookie. Fortunately, we live in San Diego.

2. Organic Athlete is a great group to join to get out and get some sunshine and fresh air. Running, biking, and as I hear it, swimming for those motivated triathletes.

3. Straining your ankle hurts, immobilizes you, and takes at least three weeks to heal before you can get back to almost walking normally.

4. There will be other half-marathons.

5. Everything that grows has protein. All Vegan store has a lot of great cookbooks and reference books. Eating more raw foods (at least a salad a day) makes me feel good and is good for you.

6. The H3 machine at the San Diego blood bank allows me to feel great after donating. They separate components they need (Apheresis (ay-fur-ee-sis)) and replenish fluids at the end of the process. I just wish they had Newman-O's in the canteen.

7. Cockroaches can't get into plastic zipper bags.

8. Ball python snakes like to hibernate in fluffy Santa caps.

9. Professional Organizing gives me some interesting stories. Ethically, I keep these stories generic.

10. On the special occasions when they let you into the Spreckle's Organ Pavilion during a concert, such as the 92nd anniversary, standing next to the pipes is very loud.

Homework for 2007: Try not complaining at all, out loud or in your head, for seven straight days. Or on the positive side, gratitude.

Quote: "We say that life is like a marathon race, but the former can only be run once."

-- Marathon, A novel by W. William Winokur, (c) 2005, p. 442.

Boxing Day

Merry Christmas! As usual, the box is the best part of the gift. My aunt knitted and sent me a beautiful yellow afghan. She sent it in the perfect size box for the gift and for the cats. Wooster, Ccino, and Puffin each took their turn in the box. Larry's parents sent the boys each a catnip mouse, so that was exciting to have the mouse cornered in the box.

It's sunny and warmish in San Diego, but I'm wrapped up in my new blanky. I like how it came with some of Smudge and Suzie's fur on it. My aunt has two black-and-white kitties and you just can't hide black fur on a yellow background. Anytime I need a hug from the East, wrap it around and know that every stitch (single crochet debbie style btw) is a stitch of love.

Spreckles Organ on Christmas Eve

This is my church for the holidays: listen to the sweet pipes of the Spreckels Organ Pavilion, Balboa Park, San Diego. Today, Carol Williams, San Diego Civic Organist for the past five years, performed an assortment of pieces demonstrating the range of the instrument. For the holidays, she played Greensleeves, Silent Night, and ended the program with a medley from the Sound of Music.

Sample of Greensleeves complete with plane flying overhead (thank you SD airport)

Purry Christmas!

Alix: Awwww, what a cute card. But shouldn't it be Percy's turn to be the star this year? Seems to me that Ccino gets all the publicity! Of course he does have star quality, but Percy is old faithful!

Maddie: Yes, yes, Capp is our show cat. I really try for the other guys, but they have to work with me too.

Alix: Poor Percy. You knew I'd say that. I mean, Ccino is the very last entrant to your family. So what if he's gorgeous? Doesn't Percynality count for something? I'm going to have to get tough with you. Percy deserves a POW and I want you to post one, even if he's just sleeping (See Smoothie Day).

Alix got tough with me and Larry's gonna get technical on you. You might infer that then Percy was the first cat into the family, but it was Wooster. Looking all snuggly, rolling over on his back and reaching out with a paw. Let me preface that this was in the Connecticut Humane Society's facility in Newington, CT. He was the first cat who chose us. Next, Larry found Puffin, both he and Wooster of the domestic long haired variety of feline. Thirdly, senior senor Percy was brought into the "interview room". The staff interviews the humans to make sure we understand the responsibilities of caring for a pet. More importantly, I wanted the cats to interview each other, to pass the butt-sniffing and nose-kissing tests. Since there wasn't Tazmanian Devil fur flying, we adopted all three cats that day. Percy and Wooster have this alpha cat posturing going on, but on the whole the boys get along just fine.

Less than a year later, my Dad met Cappuccino in a pet store. He called me to say that this was just too beautiful a cat to be kept in their basement (where my Mom relegates pets.) With trepidation (4 boys?!), I brought home Ccino. Having come from an apartment with six or seven other Himalayans, this was nothing to him and everyone bonded nicely.

Smoothie day, smoothie day. Tra-la-la-la smoothie day!

It all started with Cappuccino or Wooster. Cappuccino needed special diet food to suppress his bladder stone formation. With his smushed-nose face, he has trouble eating food and is most efficient with blended food. Wooster needed what Ccino was having, so that's when we also introduced wet food to the other cats. Wooster, the brat that he is, is now on-again-off-again with wet food. Supreme snubber. Not Percy. Percy is a good little eater.


I need to back-track a little bit. Ccino's food is blended with an additional can of water added in a stainless steel, dedicated-to-cat-fud blender carafe. This makes several servings. So "Smoothie Day" is when the room-temperature smoothie is originally blended, not spooned out from the fridge a day or two later. With the blender already dirty, why not blend up the other cats' food too?

As I said, Percy loves smoothie day. And he loves his routines. After dinner, he saunters over to the banana leaf stool to groom himself. Sorry I didn't get a shot of the tongue in action, but imagine for youself that he's a very efficient groomer.