None for me, thanks

I guess those of us who don't believe in god were raised "wrong" and are morally impotent.  And people wonder why I choose not to believe in a god or religion for that matter.  Forgive me but catholics are the most hypocritical bunch of people I've ever met.  Preach, preach, preach but don't bother to follow the moral high ground.  Teach your children to stone the nonbelievers because it's the right thing to do.  God would want that.

The following was taken from wsbt.com our local television station

(WSBT) Some parents are being warned not to let their children see "The Golden Compass."

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• View the trailer for "The Golden Compass"

The controversial movie is set to hit the big screen next week.

The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights is leading the fight against the movie, urging people to boycott.

Now, some local Catholic schools and churches are making sure parents are aware.

“The Golden Compass” is based on a popular children's book written by outspoken atheist Philip Pullman.

“I mean, my kids are excited. They want to go see it. It's exciting,” said parent Christine Zupsich.

But critics say the movie is a watered down version of the book, which is part of a trilogy centered on a fight against organized religion.

It includes a plot to kill a character known as "God."

While the movie doesn't go that far, parents at St. Bavo's School in Mishawaka received a note fromthe school’s principal, urging them to boycott.

“We don't need that because the church does so much for our children, no matter if it’s Catholic or not, and so to disintegrate or say God does not exist, I think is totally wrong,” said Principal Linda Hixon.

She's not alone.

The weekly bulletins at both St. Anthony's and St. Jude Catholic Church in South Bend contained warnings about “The Golden Compass.” They ask parents to take special consideration if thinking about going to see the film.

But Zupsich says, although they are Catholic, she'll probably still let her children see the movie.

“I'm not worried at all because I know I've raised my kids the right way. They believe in their faith and it's very strong,” Zupsich said.

The Catholic League is concerned the movie will lead children to the book.

The actors in this film have rejected the idea that the movie's message is anti-church.

The movie hits theaters December 7.

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

 

With all that's been going on, I forgot to post that we'd gotten our Christmas tree this weekend.  We usually go the day after Thanksgiving but we were going with the couple in the previous post and they always do the black Friday thing so we waited till Saturday.  Rich told me it wasn't that cold when he walked in our house so I just grabbed my coat.  Had I known that I'd be freezing my ass off for an hour, I would've grabbed a sweatshirt.  We took the horse ride out to the trees and look for what seemed like forever.  Everything takes so much longer when you have a toddler with you, especially when it's the first time she's ever really gotten to play in snow.  Last year we ended up with a douglas fir but I ended up hating that tree because it fell over so many times and the needles were fairly sharp.  This time we were looking at frasier firs, which were the most expensive but also tend to hold their needles longest and aren't sharp in the least bit.  We looked at every frasier fir they had and none of them were the "right" tree so we went back up to the barn to get some hot chocolate and warm up a bit.  I was going to look at some of the other types of trees and consider them but on our way back, I noticed they had many pre-cut frasier's by the lake.  After getting a nice warm cup of chocolate, we made our way to the lake.  By then I was frustrated and cold and just wanted to go home so I was determined that one of these trees would be ours.  There was a family choosing between two trees.  They took the one I wanted.  I was disappointed and thought for sure none of the other trees would match up to that one.  Walking dangerously close to the very cold lake, I found the perfect tree, even better than the other one.  I told Shawn to grab it and I headed back to the car with Jasmine.  By then, Liz and Rich had already gotten their tree (also a pre-cut), a blue spruce and were tying it to the top of their car.  By the time we got home, Jasmine was passed out so I started putting some of the lights on it without her.  Before I knew it, they were all on and it was so much easier than last years tree.  I became so frustrated with last years tree that I took all the lights off and had my mom come over and help me put them all back on.  If we can afford it, next year we'll definitely go with the frasier!

 

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Infection

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So urgent... urgent urgent wait and see

First, as of right now, Jake does not need surgery.  He goes back to the vet on Saturday morning.  He has a severe ulcer on his cornea.  The vet said it was extremely painful so they gave him a shot to calm him down and some medicines that we have to give to him six times a day.  Hopefully, by the weekend, he will be feeling better.

I spent two hours in urgent care tonight.  The bites I have from Jake, have become  infected... all six of them.  Thank you Jake.  I have to be on horse pill sized antibiotics.  I woke up with my arm feeling really sore.  I even woke up from it several times during the night which really told me something was wrong because a tornado can't wake me up.  After I was up for a while, it kept getting worse and it was red and hot so I did a search for cat bites, found a lot of stuff the scared the hell out of me and went to the doctor.  It hurts all the time but is worse when I move my wrist or when my arm is touched.  (Jasmine smacked my arm at the doctor and I swear my pain went from a 4 to an 8 immediately)  After I was home for a few hours, the phone rang.  By then it was 11pm so I thought it was really odd.  Then I realized the caller id said it was from memorial health so I thought it was the doctor's office calling for whatever reason.  (I figured it had to do with the dangerous animal form I had to fill out for my OWN cat) It was my friend Liz.  Her little boy who is one was admitted into the hospital tonight for pnuemonia.  It's the second time he's been in the hospital.  The first time he came pretty close to dying.  They hope he'll be out in the morning.  He was dehydrated and feeling pretty lousy. 

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The cat formerly known as Jake

He is now known as the asshole cat. 

 

This is Jake, aka Jake 'n Bake, aka asshole cat.  (notice the difference in his eyes, the one closest to the camera is the one injured)  This sweet looking cat did THIS with his TEETH.

The worst two are all the way down to my muscle.  At first none of them bled, I had to force them.  And yes, I've washed it SEVERAL times and will do it several more before I go to sleep.  Now you see why he is the asshole cat.  I'm a little concerned as this is a cat who has NEVER bitten me.  I'm hoping it's just an effect of the pain.  But I'm not taking any chances.  I found a small litter pan and took some litter from another box and stuck him in the bathroom away from all other living things. 

Look how pleased he is with himself.  Ready to strike again.  (ok admittedly, he had just finished eating and was licking his mouth) Ok, so I'm really not that upset with him, I just didn't want him hurting anyone else.  He was growling at my daughter and I got his attention so he wouldn't attack her.  That's when I found the litter box.  I'm actually quite worried that he is in such a severe amount of pain that he has resorted to causing me physical pain.  My husband is going to try and come home early to take him to the vet's office.  Which is actually shocking because my husband quite frankly hates this cat.  (the feelings mutual and if my husband goes near Jake, he hisses and runs away) They've never had a good relationship and it got worse when Jake decided that the towels were a good place to go potty.  Jake is part of the outdoor trio that live in the enclosed area.  A problem with having Jake locked in the bathroom... he knows how to open doors.  He used to do it all the time at my moms house and it used to aggravate me to no end when he would escape from my bedroom and free the rest of the cats in the process. 

No good Deed

Why is it when you have a good day, it all goes wrong?  Why does no good deed go unpunished?  Just a half hour ago I was smiling, and singing Christmas carols, now I'm crying and wondering what the hell I'm going to do.  I literally have 20 dollars to my name.  We just put insurance on the car we bought from my mom and that took the money for the week.  I go out to give the cats fresh water tonight and noticed that Jake is squinting.  He wouldn't let me look at him outside so I brought him in to get a better look.  His eyeball has blood in it and his third eyelid is covering most of his eye.  I have no problem having a one eyed cat, I have a problem with how much it will cost to make him a one eyed cat.  I know from past experience that this is what will need to be done, the sooner the better.  He's also got a cold, which will spread to the rest of my cats within a matter of 24 hours but I don't have an extra cat box right now to separate him from the indoor cats, nor do I have extra cat litter.  I don't even know what to do right now.  Why can't these animals stay healthy for a while?

Santa Claus is Coming to town

Ever try giving a rat a bath?  It's like trying to bathe a REALLY small cat.  It was the first time my boys have gotten a bath and will be the last for at least a little while.  That was an awful experience for all.  I have scratches up and down my arms and two rats pouting.  Jasmine thought it was hilarious, of course, she was watching from the sidelines and not from the view I had.  That'll be the last time they go near the sink easily. 

I'm making one of the sugar cookie recipes that I'm looking at for Christmas.  They look good, smell good but who knows if they'll taste good.  I have never used shortening before so who knows if I measured it right or not.  They are supposed to stay fluffy and soft and not get crispy.  I think I'll also make some frosting for them after they cool.  (as long as I have enough vanilla left)  If they taste as good as they're supposed to, I'll post the recipe for anyone who wants to try their hand at them.  The other ones I'm going to try are cream cheese sugar cookies.  It only uses 3 ounces of cream cheese but because the batter is so sticky, you have to put it in the refridgerator overnight before you can cook them.  I definitely don't have enough vanilla to make those tonight so they'll have to wait till tomorrow night.  Most of these cookies will be going to work with my husband whether they taste good or not.  Well, I guess if they taste awful I probably won't send them with him.  I'd like to be known as a good cook.  ; ) Jasmine just tried her first one and she says they're yummy.  She's a picky kid so that's saying something.  I guess they're alright but they could use some frosting and more sugar.  Considering this is my first try at any sugar cookie, they were pretty decent.  Definitely needs frosting.

Wow, have you listened to some of the country xmas songs lately?  They're really starting to get hillbilly with it aren't they?  We have a station here that from midnight on Thanksgiving, till the day after Christmas, they only play Christmas songs.  It's a country station so there's a lot of country singers on it but they mix it up pretty good with the older stuff too.  A little Christmas music, the smell of sugar cookies baking, it reminds me of the holidays at my mom's house.  She bakes like a crazy person around Christmas time.  My husband's favorite is probably the peanut butter balls covered in chocolate.  I don't like peanut butter on anything besides crackers so I'm not a fan.  It depends on my mood as to which is my favorite.  She always makes fudge (which is sinfully good), sugar cookies and sometimes other things. 

There are days when I look at Jasmine and she's so cute that I want to cry and then a few minutes later she's being so bad that I want to throttle her.  I guess that's part of the terrible twos.  Well off to make frosting before Jasmine eats all of the cookies.

This indecision has gotten me down

I'm having such a hard time deciding on what to make for Christmas.  I've been looking at cakes, mousses, cookies and just about any other dessert type food.  All of them look really good and it's so hard to pick one.  Obviously, whatever I choose I will make as a trial run beforehand.  One month doesn't seem like enough time to make them all.  (or enough time to lose the weight from each dessert!) I've also been looking at recipes for dinners.  I suggested to my mom that we have a Sunday dinner once or twice a month where anyone who wants to come, shows up.  (cousins, aunts, uncles, bf/gf) There's a lasagne I would like to try making.  It takes over 24 hours of prep time but it sounds worth it.  (most of that is refrigerator time) As well as a spaghetti and meatballs dish and many others.  Maybe we can finally start eating something other than chicken, steak and pork chops in my house!  I've just grown so tired of the same food all the time.  When it comes to making dinner I'm just like what's the point, it's the same crap we had two days ago.  Wouldn't be nice to think wow it's been a month since we've had such and such?  I'm a very picky eater though so it may take a few recipes till I find something that fits.   (and many back up dinners when I hate it)  Now I just have to start making grocery lists each week until I find something that fits.

I'm still debating on whether or not to return to the doctor for the colonoscopy.  I really don't want to go through the 24 hours before the scope.  I recently watched my mom deal with that and quite frankly, if I can avoid that, I will.  There are some days when I think there must be something seriously wrong with my stomach and other days when I just think it's only IBS-D.  My mom saw what happens when I'm out somewhere and get sick today.  I think it freaked her out.  I don't know what I look like when it happens but I usually feel faint and in general like hell.  I hope my daughter doesn't have to deal with this ever.  I think it's much more embarrassing to be a girl and have these issues than a boy.  Boys are expected to be gross and do gross things, girls are expected to be proper and clean. 

We came home late Thanksgiving night to find that the aussie boys had literally eaten the flooring in our backroom.  I KNOW which dog it was, Tarin.  He always seems to be trying to destroy some part of my house when I'm not around.  For the moment we'll be borrowing a crate from my mom.  Right now we have two hard crates and one soft.  We haven't got any of our already crate trained dogs to go in the soft one without trying to destroy it.  It seemed like a good idea at the time.  The crate was massive and only 20 bucks.  Big enough for even our doberman to be in.  When we tried the dogs in it, the just tried to walk out of it and ended up rolling the entire thing.  Unless your dog is really well behaved in their crate, I wouldn't recommend one of these.  Thankfully, we were already planning on replacing the linoleum in the backroom.

All I'm missin' is a cup of coco

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

 

The room that my husband cleaned out to make his office has become some what of my refuge.  This was the room that was originally our bedroom and I didn't like it before.  Now, it has Christmas lights in the window, carpeting (most of my house is wood flooring) and a little warmer feel than the rest of the house. Plus, I can shut the door and keep Jasmine in here, keeping her from sneaking off to create messes elsewhere in the house.  Last winter, we didn't use this room at all.  I actually turned the heat off to it since we were never in here, leading me to believe it would always be cold in here even if the heat was on.  It's actually quite comfortable, despite the very old windows that seem to have a steady stream of cold air coming through them.  What's weirder still is that there is no tv, no radio and no clocks in this room.  It's rare that I will stay in a room without background noise.  Although, the lacking clock is not unusual in this house, we only have one and I did it on purpose.  I don't like to always be looking at the clock.  Why do I need to know what time it is if I don't have anywhere specific to be.  I prefer to live by the sun and the moon rather than a ticking piece of machinary.  Although guests frequently ask why there aren't anymore clocks.  This room is nice, it's quiet with few distractions and I think it's what I've been needing for a while.  While my husand still uses it at his "office," I have obviously taken over, what with the candles and plants that have moved in slowly over the last few days.

The story of the rat and the monster

My name is Tikki and this is the place I have been since I came into this scary room.  You see it's the underside of the chair.  Mom seems to think I'm liable to be crushed so she keeps dragging me out everytime that noisy small human gets on top of the chair.

My name is Rikki and I vow to discover and conquer every inch of this strange land for it is.... (excruciatingly long pause... rat is on his back legs with fist in the air) my destiny.

Ah, yes, done searching this wall.  I can only imagine the dangers around the next corner but alas, I WILL prevail.

Drats, the monster has captured me!  I must find a weapon in which to escape... aHA, I have it, a loud high pitched squeak should do the trick!

HA, I foiled the monster's plan to have fila minorat!  Now I must search for safety till the monster tires of me.  Where's the pansyass at???  He could serve as a distraction... or bait.

This should work perfectly.  As long as I stay low, these concealing walls should protect me.

Blasted!  She has managed to find me, purhaps these walls weren't made for concealing things?

Finally, I have found my safe haven.  The large monster never would allow the smaller one to take me from her.

And that has been the crazy Jamie show... we'll be here all week.  haha

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Onto the rabbits and birdies

Before you view the pictures of Scrappy I want you to know a little about him.  He is a Rex Rabbit, also know as a velvetin rabbit because their fur literally feals like velvet.  I would not reccomend Rex Rabbit's to anyone who wants a very calm sweet bunny.  They are a little more flighty than other rabbits and rarely appear calm.  While there are many qualities that make me really enjoy Scrappy, he can nudge you really hard when you're in his way (it's cute), he can roll a ball from one side of the room to the other and he can investigate things like he's on a mission.  But he's NOT cuddly.  He's a rabbit that likes to come hang out by you but doesn't want to be petted a lot, a few is enough for him.  If you ever want a cuddly rabbit, you're better off going with a netherland dwarf.  They're naturally sweeter and MUCH smaller than most rabbits.

 

This is Scrappy and that's the same place he was for about twenty minutes...

Until, that is, he found out there was a carrot on the other side of that chair. ; )

From left to right... You can see the tail end of the nice baby.  Next to Mr. McBitey, the other baby.  Next to him is proud papa, Romeo.  And the bird taking flight it momma, Gollum.  You see slightly, that the babies are a little smaller than their parents.

This is a picture (not a good one obviously) of my favorite baby.  I'm calling her a female for now even though it won't be known for a few more weeks.  Her chest feathers are a much darker (more of a stormy blue) than those of the other three. 

Bird in front is mom, next to her is Mr.McBitey, next to him is Pretty girl and looking on from a lower perch is papa.

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My silly Jazzy girl

No, she has never seen the movie Home Alone.  I just told her to put both her hands up and this is what she came up with.

Another one, she seems a little more dramatic here, could have something to do with showing off for daddy.  This is our guest bedroom/office.  It is being remodeled... ok so the remodeling process is taking more than two years but alas, money really doesn't grow on trees.  ; )

This was when she was starting to act like she was going to be sweet and cute.  This is the only picture with her hands up where she looks innocent.  haha

In a basket that she has been too small for for a very very long time.  But apparently, she thought if the rat can fit, so can I.

Classic Jasmine, her tongue is always out or her mouth is always wide open, as was the first picture.  She rarely aims for sweet when she knows she's getting her picture taken. 

 

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Ratta Tat Tat

What a difference 24 hours can make.  Last night I felt absolutely hopeless and like there was no light at the end of the tunnel.  I was at my mom's till 2am, unfortunately she had to get up in the morning for work but I needed someone to talk to.  This morning, Shawn and I got into it and it seemed to help just to get some things off my chest and I honestly don't think he totally realized the way he was behaving.  I knew he was being an asshole but not to the extent that I had noticed.  We went and got burgers and had a nice dinner.  Jasmine loves cheeseburgers and it's one of the few things she will eat completely.  Once we got home, Shawn went to bed.  Me and Jasmine got the rabbit and rats out of their cages and took them to the spare bedroom.  Shawn just finished cleaning it out the other day so it's small animal safe, plus it has carpet which makes it much easier for the rabbit to hop around.  I thought this would be relaxing and allow me to do some things online.  I ended up having to watch Jasmine's every step.  She doesn't yet understand that falling on one of them would probably kill them.  For the most part the rabbit, Scrappy, just wandered around the room.  The more outgoing and adventurous of the two rats, Rikki, was all over the room.  I have pictures that I'm going to post once I find the camera cord... AGAIN.  He was climbing on me, up Jasmine's leg and over the rabbit.  At one point, I allowed our border collie, Mia to join us.  She has a very high prey drive but is VERY aware that these are NOT animals she can have for lunch.  It's quite funny to watch a 55lb. dog run like mad from a less than 1lb. rat.  You would've thought he was breathing fire.  And of course Rikki is stupi... er thinks he's bigger than he is, and made a game of chasing Mia around the room, trying all the while to hitch a ride on her tail.  The other rat, Tikki, sat under the chair the whole time.  He doesn't like things that he doesn't recognize.  The only room he's adventurous in is my bedroom. 

Why can't life just be easy for a little while?  I can't remember if there was ever a time in my life where it all felt easy?  I feel like I'm always swimming upstream and never making any progress.  There are days I just wish I could stay asleep for a really really long time.  The only thing that keeps me from becoming so depressed that I just don't move at all, is my daughter.  Sometimes I feel like she's all I have.  My husband has become extremely passive aggressive.  It's one of my least favorite ways that people express themselves.  I'd rather you just came out with it than torture me with snide comments for months on end.  There are days when everything is made out to be my fault.  I wouldn't be surprised if I caused natural disasters as well.  I just want things to be ok for a little while.  It's funny because when I think about a lot of this past summer, I think about how much fun I had and how it was one of the best summer's I've ever had.  (aside from losing my dog) And now I feel like this coming year will be one of the worst ever.  There are days I just want to give up, crawl in a hole and die.

Sweet? 16

Wow, I was told that if I had one snail they would reproduce like crazy.  I had no idea what I was in for.  Yesterday, I had one snail, today I have sixteen!  What the hell?  How did that happen?  Did the big one just explode over night?  What I think is weird too is that I have another tank that is 5 times the size of this one and only one snail to speak of.  I thought I'd get an extra one here or there but fifteen in one night?  My betta seems to like knocking the baby snails off the wall, then watching them crawl back up.  It makes a nice "toy" for him but I'm sure it's pretty annoying to the snails.  I'm still in awe.  I just keep thinking, seriously, I have sixteen of them now?  What the hell am I going to do with sixteen snails in a five gallon tank?  And I promised my friend that I got the original snail from that I would not buy any fish that may or may not eat snails so that's not even an option.  Just... wow.

It's Just One of Those Days

Ah, my day SUCKED.  You ever have days when you feel like gunning down anyone in your path?  Granted I wouldn't actually hurt anyone but I FEEL like it.  Anymore, it seems like everyone in this college town, particularly the ones in their 20's, think they own everywhere they go and that everyone else should bow to them and let them through.  I started off the day with not enough sleep.  Not a good way for me to EVER start a day.  I'm short tempered enough without a lack of sleep.  I was at the mall with my daughter and my mom, we went into the pet store (not to buy, I never buy ANYTHING from pet stores).  The first stop was a quick one.  I like to look at the ferrets and a young, extremely rude girl who actually was cussing at one of the girls that works there, was in my way so I opted to leave.  We walked through the mall, just browsing.  Now, walking with a 2 year old is slow going and it's not gonna get much faster when you try to trample my child.  More likely, you will end up in serious pain and no longer in the mood to shop.  Just go the hell around and get OVER it.  Someday you may be the one with a kid and you wouldn't want people squashing her.  This one is ESPECIALLY for the six foot tall guys who look like they're too cool to look where they're going.  Your smile is not going to charm me and your apology will not pacify me.  When it comes to my daughter I am very protective and will lash out at you for very little reason, even the fact that the way you looked at her offended me. (no I'm NOT kidding) I once bitched out a girl at a local restaurant for complaining to the person she was on the phone with that she couldn't hear them because of some baby.  It was MY baby and she was laughing.  I don't remember her voice going above library tones after that.  I don't find myself intimidating but others must as they usually back down.  Eventually, Jasmine realized she didn't get to visit with the rabbits while we were at the pet store, so I went back to try and make amends.  The same bitchy girl was there, only now she had finally picked a small lion head rabbit to take home.  (and probably drop off at a shelter later as she, herself joked about the impulse buy and then made it obvious that she has no idea what to do with a rabbit) After looking at rabbits, I made my way to the ferrets.  This pet store is not set up well for traffic.  The small animals are kept in a circular area in the center of the very crowded store and there are several displays close to the animals.  Jasmine is small, she doesn't take up much space.  I removed my favorite ferret and let Jasmine pet him.  While we were kneeling on the floor, bitchy girl needs to get through (and apparently can't walk her lazy ass around the display, she MUST walk through us) and the first time she says excuse me but there's not much feeling to it.  The next time she says nothing and the third time, she says excuse me towards my daughter VERY rudely.  I said nothing to her at the time but if I had to do it over again, I don't think it would've went so well.  Also, the girl she cussed at earlier, is now the one she has to deal with to pay for the rabbit and cage.  I don't blame the cashier for being less than friendly with her.  She's worked there a long time is normally very nice but what the bitchy girl said was WAY over the line and bad enough that I don't feel I should repeat it here.  I try not to use the F-word in this forum.  Eventually we left and went on our way to get something to eat.  At most the of the restaurants that I go to, there is a waiter/waitress that knows me and my husband quite well so even on the busiest nights, I don't worry about the wait to get seated.  ; ) Leaving the restaurant, someone parked extremely close to my car, making it difficult for me to back out quickly.  On top of that, there was an SUV behind me, who was nicely allowing me to back out while he waited.  As I was backing out of my space, a girl was starting out of hers and made it out faster and somehow seemed to think that if she pulled forward towards my car, that I would magically move faster or be transported out of her way.  (I HAD the right of way here) When it didn't work that way, she got angry, started pointing at me and cussing.  Now, it's not been a good day up to this point and I feel it's important to add that I normally don't get road rage.  I retorted with many things that I won't repeat here but I KNOW she read my lips and flipped her off.  Of course, I ended up beside her car for the next three miles till we parted ways.  For her being in such a hurry, she still had to wait for the SUV behind me and I, driving the speed limit, still made it out ahead of her.  I have NEVER wanted to hurt a complete stranger like that before.  It would not have went well had my daughter not been with me, I was THAT pissed.  Later in the night, I was with my husband and I was driving again.  We were in a 55 and the guy in front of me with his brand new (bought TODAY) mercedes was going 35.  Yes, I was riding a little closer than I should've been but until he started going RIDICULOUSLY slowly, I wasn't aware that I was that close.  I wanted to hurt him too but only his nice shiny new vehicle.  My husband said nothing and told my daughter to hush when she told me to watch my mouth because mommy was scary right now.  haha My blood pressure is still up as I write this.  Seriously, strangers don't normally annoying me to this extent but today was just one of those days. 

As Fred Durst put it,

Its just one of those days
When you don't wanna wake up
Everything is f-ed
Everybody sux
You don't really know why
But you want justify
Rippin' someone's head off
No human contact
And if you interact
Your life is on contract
Your best bet is to stay away mf-er
It's just one of those days!!

No subject for me ; )~

I'm not sure as to whether I specified the cages use at the time, it's actually used for two male rats, not ferrets.  We don't have ferrets at this time but I would like to within the next few years.  I'm in love with this little guy at the petstore but as most of you know, I don't buy any living thing from petstores.  But I think I guilt tripped someone else into taking him.  ; ) I have been stopping by for weeks to see if he has gotten a home yet.  Then I play with him for a while and end up with scratches and bites all over my hands and arms but he's just playing.  He has a heart shape on his nose that makes him look sweet but it's a bit deceiving, he's a naughty ferret who, given the chance, could cause a lot of micheif.  There was a girl holding him when I went to play with him tonight and I said he liked her and she should take him home.  Mom replied that they have two and he's VERY tempting.  They were still there when I left.  I hope when I go back he's gone.  He really needed to get out of that cage before he started getting bad habits from lack of stimulation.  The others he was housed with were always asleep when I was there so I have no idea if they even care to be bought.  And no my dad is NOT an animal lover... at all.  He doesn't come to my house often for that reason alone.  He claims it's finally something I was interested in that he could build for me.  He likes reptiles and that's about it.  Mostly turtles and his wife refuses to let him have one.  They do have one cat, Baby that my dad does love but I don't think they'll have anymore after she dies.  It's weird for me to go to HIS house because he doesn't have a bunch of animals.  It seems forgein to me and I feel out of my element when I'm not surrounded by animals.  Most people think I'm weird and odd due to the amount of animals I have, I think they're weird and odd because they don't have any.  ; )

Shawn made chili today while I was sleeping.  As soon as I opened my bedroom door I immediately felt sick to my stomach.  The smell of chili isn't one that I enjoy and in fact I bitched about it so much throughout the day that when it was done, he put it in tupperware in the fridge and immediately cleaned the crock pot.  (there was NO WAY I was touching that thing) I can still smellit a little bit through the house.  There are just some smells I don't tolerate well and that's one of them.  Next time I get pregnant, he's going to have to make that vomit outside.  (sorry to those of you who enjoy chili) I didn't eat any dinner because I just couldn't stomach food with that aroma in the air. 

Back to the men thing.  My brother and husband both agree that men get a type of boy pms.  They explained what they felt like during these days and I was like damn, you really do get pms.  BUT I still don't feel bad for you because once it's gone, you don't start bleeding like a stuck pig.  ha ha

I took a half a davacet a little while ago to help me sleep.  Since Jasmine has been so weird about when she'll sleep, my internal clock is out of whack and not even prescription sleeping pills combined with over the counter sleeping pills are doing the trick.  This is the first time I've ever taken darvcet so I don't know yet how it's going to effect me.  I prefer to experiment with these drugs when my hubby is home, just in case I end up with my head of the toliet.  But I don't think a 50mg darvcet cut in half is going to do me in.  At least let's hope not. 

I hope not to sleep the entire day today as I have a lot to do before it gets nasty out again.  Some stations are claiming snow by the end of the week, I'm not buying it.  Mainly because the weather station I trust to be right, is saying it won't get cold enough.  I think what I'll do with the cats, is mount a heating lamp at the top center of their house, that way it won't be too close to anything to catch on fire.  I will still only use it on the colder nights as a precaution.  I don't feel comfortable using it at all but I don't want them to be freezing either. 

Big Expense for Little animal

I thought since I've had this cage for nearly a year I should probably show it off a little.  It was by no means inexpensive to make.  The clean plexyglass was 35 bucks a for a small slab.  The only part of the cage not made with the plexy is the back.  Everything that went into building the cage was expensive, all the pipes, fitting and odds and ends.  You cannot buy this in the store, my dad decided to make it for me.  It took him approx. three months to finish as he had some trouble with the top sliding doors.  He couldn't find an adhesive that held everything in place.  When all was said and done, this is a $500 home for a $5 pet.  You could say they have a mansion.  ; )  It has many features, not all of them listed below but it would be a long blog if I did.  I plan on enlisting my dad's skills when we get three or four ferrets after we sell this house.  I will buy a store cage (around $200) while he decides how he would like to build his own.  That way they can spend one day in one cage and the next in the other.  Ferrets need a great deal of stimulation and every little thing helps.

 

 

To give you an idea of just how big this cage is, that's a 55 gallon aqaurium in the background.  (with the plywood on top... it was their temporary home till this one was finished) And yes, that is our name eteched into the top left door. 

View of the tubes and "rooms."  There are three seperate rooms inside the cage which were in case someone needed some alone time.  They use one room (the one you can't see) for sleeping in and the others they use for eating, one rat in each room.  It cuts down on squabbles.

Top view, this time you can see the sleeping room.  In the corner is where their food goes.  I think there's apples, grapes, carrots and some kind of berry in there now.

This is the fan.  It's original use was for a large CPU.  It's new function, to help circulate air in the cage.  It works great and it's on a timer too so I don't have to go turn it off. 

The lighting system.  It's not on a timer but I generally use it on cold days for a few hours.  It has a bright setting and a dimmer.

Days are never long enough

Today started off ok.  My husband seemed in a good mood.  But by the time we were done grocery shopping, he got grouchy.  When we got home he was snapping at everyone.  (mostly animals) He was supposed to watch Rocky Horror Picture Show with me but apparently he decided that enough was enough when the transvestite came on.  I was a little annoyed because I watch all his crap boy movies and he can't sit thourgh an hour with me?  I think the movie is funny even if it is a little weird.  Jasmine liked all the singing and I helped her dance around the bed while grouchy slept.  (he can sleep through anything) I was more than a little annoyed.  He can be shitty all day and just fall asleep like it's no big deal, whereas the rest of us have to deal with the aftermath.  I was trying to keep Jasmine up as late as possible and I could tell she was starting to fall asleep so we went out into the kitchen.  (she's been sleeping for two hours every night and then staying up till about ten in the morning... it's killing me sleep wise) I'm pretty sure he's shitty because the house is a mess so I was like whatever, I'll clean a little.  The thing is, when I start cleaning, it's hard for me to stop and I will end up doing it for hours on end.  That's probably why I avoid it.  I cleaned the kitchen up a little bit, as well as the bathroom.  Won't he be shocked when he goes throw away a tissue and realizes there's no longer a trash can in there.  I got sick of it.  It's clean for one day and then it's full and both of us are too stubborn to throw it out so it just stays that way till one of us (ME) gets sick of looking at it and dumps it.  So from now on, we'll both have to walk the ten feet to the kitchen to throw away whatever we have in there.  I had to go out and get another recycle bin so I let the aussie boys out.  (we use a trash can and two regular recycle bins and I end up filling them to the brim with recycling... my husband hates it) After I threw all the recycling away, I decided while, the boys were out, I would mop their room.  It was staying fairly clean for a while but then Savannah came along and puppies don't hold their bladders well so soon it was a mess again.  For the night, at least, the floor are clean again.  (they're linolem) Jasmine loves "skating" while I mop.  Hopefully, the attitude is gone tomorrow.  I have enough attitude for both of us quite frankly. 

I banished the remaining baby bird from his nest today.  I think he would've stayed in there till I kicked him out anyways and I was afraid he was too stupid to get out to eat and I don't think mom was feeding him anymore.  He wasn't happy about it but he'll be ok.  He followed his dad, Romeo around the cage while I was in there.  They were tweeting and preening eachother the entire time.  While mom and daughter just sat on a perch like 'what's the big deal?'

I busted my ass in the cat house today trying to get ready for this coming week of cold and snow.  I'm almost finished.  I have two more bails of straw to add and hopefully I'll have one left over that I can break open for them to lay on.  My grandparents had all kinds of heavy equipment in there that left me huffing and puffing.  Shawn will have to remove the plow tomorrow.  It has no wheels and there's no way I can get it out of the outdoor area.  The cats seemed to enjoy the excitment... well not Minka so much but she doesn't seem to enjoy much of anything except food.  It'll be a weight off me when I know it's done and that they have some way to keep warm.  I'm going to get a heating lamp but only use it on the colder nights since there is a great deal of straw in a small space.  One of the aussie boys snuck in while I was removing the wood chipper and was eating pooh.  I had to drag him out.  What is so appealing about cat poop? 

Tomorrow I have to run to the mall to take back a shirt that my mom got Jasmine the other day.  The hanger said 3T but the shirt was actually 2T.  The same thing happened to me the other day.  I tried on a L shirt (that's what the hanger said) and I could barely get it on.  I was thinking, ok I KNOW I've lost weight, what the hell.  Well, it was an XS.  Anyone been in the Juniors section of a store lately?  Yeah, the small's are made for 13 year olds who haven't gotten boobs yet.  I'm a 34D, a small isn't gonna cut it. 

I've been meaning to write about the cleaning supplies I've been using.  I started using Method cleaning supplies the beginning of last year.  I have asthma and regular cleaning products are extremely harsh on my lungs and leave me feeling sick to my stomach the rest of the day.  I started with the floor cleaner.  It works just as good as the stuff with chemicals in it without the nasty smell.  By the way, Method is chemical free and enviromentally safe.  The guy who made it, proved it was safe by drinking a shot of it.  Now, I don't think I'd drink it but I trust that it's better for me, my family, my animals and the enviroment than the other crap.  I use it for cleaning counters now too.  Tomorrow I'm going to get some to use in the bathroom since the bathroom cleaners seem to be the harshest.  All the method products I've used, work great and are the same price as the other stuff.  And they smell good.  They also make air freshner's like the glad plugins, only again, natural without chemicals.  Those work GREAT.  It lasted far longer than any other plugin we've ever used and smelled much better too.  Ok, 'I'm done saving the world for now.  ; )

Flew the coup

I just came from the bird room and one of the little chicks decided to leave the nest!!!  I wasn't sure how it was going to work since mom seemed to be willing to feed them forever.  It was my favorite one that was first willing to brave the rest of their cage.  I took the other one out and put him on a perch, where he seemed ok but when I returned to the room, he was back in the box and a wee bit upset that he had been removed in the first place.  I think mom is going to stop feeding them soon so he's going to have to leave it eventually.  Dad seems so happy to finally be able to groom them.  All this time mom has only allowed him to sit outside the opening and give her food.  He's never, to my knowledge, been allowed in with them.  He was chirping at both of them and preening them while I was in the room.  I also need the last baby to get out of the box so I can take it out of the cage.  I know Gollum and she'll be back to making babies immediately if I don't stop her.  My poor female cockatiel, Violet, seems tramatized now.  Once she seen there were two new babies that appeared out of no where, she hid at the bottom of the cage and didn't come back up till I came in the room to scratch her head.  Poor girl doesn't know where the hell they came from. 

We're having such a flea problem right now.  I gave Savannah (the puppy) some frontline two weeks ago and she STILL has fleas.  I've never had that happen after giving them frontline.  The older dogs had been doing pretty good till recently.  Molly has been itching so bad that I had to make her leave the room last night because she was keeping us all up.  I gave her frontline today but it's the smallest dose they have for up to 22lbs.  She's a flat coat retriever and closer to 50lbs.  I hope it might help a little though.  We just don't have the money to go out and unexpectedly have to buy frontline for seven dogs.  (and of course, due to the differences in weight, we would have to buy all three sizes) So I may order some capstar and give that a try along with spraying the house.  Don't fleas get better towards winter? 

It was a little more chilly last night than it has been for a while so I took out some hot hands packages to the cats.  It was the best I could do at the time.  At least it's not quite as chilly in their house as it is outside.  We're supposed to have 60's for the next few days.  It'll probably be the last time it's that warm until next year. 

Jessica Rose

Please think of Jessica Rose, she is the little girl who has cancer.  She is in critical condition in New York at Sloan's Hospital. http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jessicakohut

Damn, it's cold

My days have been spent with endless hours of Evan Almighty.  We rented it for Jasmine since she likes any movie with animals in it and she ended up liking it so much we got it for her.  For a while it was Sesame Street all day.  She wasn't watching it but it HAD to be on.  Now it's Evan Almighty or as she calls it, tigers.  (even though the tigers are only in the movie for all of ten seconds) As much as I've come to loathe the sight of the movie, I love that it occasionally buys me five or ten minutes without hearing mom, mom, mom.  Sometimes she actually says my name over and over just to get a reaction.  When I say what, she looks confused and says uhmmmmm.  She's recently begun answering questions with full sentences.  We used to ask her if she was hungry and her way of saying yes would be repeating 'are you hungry?'  Now she answers with 'Yes I am hungry.  Are you hungry?'  She's extremely polite and says thank you when a stranger holds the door for us.  Well, she really says thank you to anything.  If she thinks you've made a strange face or noise she asks if you're ok.  And usually she comes over to hug you.  That being said, she also has one of the worst potty mouths I've ever heard on a two year old.  We had it under control pretty good for a while, at least that's what we thought.  Yesterday, we were in the middle of Walmart and she was asking to look at something or buy something and Shawn told her no.  She responded with 'You're an asshole.'  Oh yes, you're choking on your coffee now.  ; )  Even I had to walk away because it was so hard for me to keep in that laugh.  My husband was upset (probably because he knew it was somehow my doing) but once he saw my face, he couldn't help but grin.  For once, she didn't see our amusement.  She used to say damnit every time she dropped something but we had taught her to say darn it instead.  (well she slipped up once tonight when I threw something in the recycle and it missed, I said nothing but she said goddamnit and quickly corrected herself) There was a time (not anymore thankfully) when she would literally run through the house saying the f-word.  I remember her running in circles in the kitchen just saying f, f, f over and over again.  I don't know how we stopped that one because she thought it was the best thing in the world.  My mouth has gotten better since she has began speaking so well.  I do still curse here and there and probably more than I should but it's better.  Shawn still has some improving to do, although he is quick to correct me when I slip.  Lucky for us, most people only see the polite little wild child and not the cursing sailor.

Me and my husband have become obsessed with Guitar Hero III.  It's a game for Xbox 360 (or PS2, PS3 and just about any other gaming console).  At first I didn't see how it was that fun or even that challenging.  I can play the guitar, not well, but I can so playing a fake one on a tv just seemed silly.  Basically instead of the usual controller, you have what appears to be a guitar, except where the strings are, there are five buttons and where you would usually pick, there is a bar that moves either way you feel comfortable.  The game can be a bit challenging I found once I started playing it but I can still kick my husband's butt on it.  It's the first video game I've really played since Jasmine was born because quite frankly, I really have better things I could be doing.  This has been nice because it's something we're doing together and not seperate.  Usually he plays some football game and I play on the computer.  Jasmine usually ends the game because she throws a super fit but it's still nice to have something silly we can do together. 

It snowed a little for the first time tonight.  Nothing stuck to the ground but it's still a sign of what's to come.  I remember as a kid, the first snowflakes were magical.  Now it's just a reminder that once again it's going to be cold and gloomy out.  Did I mention cold.  I have a "winter" coat but not really.  When I went shopping for one, all I could find were things made from animals so I settled on the less warm one, much less warm.  I was regretting it tonight when I was out making the cats more comfortable.  On my second trip I stole my mom's heavy down filled coat.  There are days I wish I wasn't so enviromentally friendly, particularly on the cold days.

Ick

Friday I had a doctor's appointment for my IBS-D.  He seemed more concerned than I.  I truly believe that all I have is IBS.  Years ago I came to him and thought for sure it was Crohn's Disease because it was so painful.  He seemed unconcerned at that time, maybe it was because I was the first to bring up Crohn's.  For now, I will be on a fiber supplement (which has shown NO signs of improving IBS-D in studies) and a prescription.  If there is no improvement in 4-6 weeks, he will want to schedule me for a colonoscopy and biosopy of my intestines to check for signs of disease.  That should be fun.  I would prefer that doesn't happen but I guess we'll see. 

Farful

One of my closest friends had to say goodbye to her dog, Farful today.  It's the only time I've ever cried when someone else's dog died.  He tried to act like a big meany but he was one of the sweetest dogs. 

NOT one of mine!  But I've had days where I've felt like this cat for sure.

 

Can I have this dance?

I think I may have just entered a whole new phase of crazy.  Ok, when I lived at my moms house a lot of weird shit would happen that only I would hear, except for one time my mom heard it too.  Usually I would hear someone calling my name over and over throughout the night.  Then it escalated to her calling my name and having a wicked laugh afterwards, to saying my name, telling me to get out and then the wicked laugh again.  By the time the last phrase came I was so used to her that I just ignored her.  I also saw the images of children in the house.  When they would see my looking they would run where I couldn't see them and then they'd be gone for days or weeks.  They didn't bother me, I just felt bad that I was scaring them and had no way of helping them move on.  The only time someone else heard something was one day me and my mom were watching wheel of fortune and we both heard my brother's door open and then close.  Except my brother was downstairs in the bathroom and no on else was home.  The dogs weren't even in the house. 

A few weeks ago I began joking that I thought little people lived in my laptop and they always seemed to be doing the dishes or vaccuming.  (that's exactly what the noises sound like but it's obviously just normal stuff going on that the computer has to do) Tonight however, I began hearing country music coming through my computer.  It was so faint I had a hard time picking up words but it was definitely country with some folk mixed in.  I could even hear where a dj would break in and do the call letters although for the life of me I couldn't tell you what they were.  WEIRD.  It's probably just some how my computer caught a signal from a tower at just the right time.  Oh and by the way, my sound is off, it's always off.  Talk about a creepy Halloween night.  Oh and the only things I usually hear in this house is that it sounds like someone is playing country music in the attic and once and a while it almost sounds like a really old music box.  I even went up to the attic (even though it TOTALLY creeps me out up there) to make sure there wasn't anything like a radio that just got lost up there.  Nothing, completely empty.  We used to sleep in the bedroom where the access to the attic was but after three months of nonstop country, we moved to another room.

Trickery

I don't appear to be sick, knock on wood.  So it must have just been from crying.  Took Jasmine out for trick or treating tonight.  Right now we only go to a few houses that are friends or family since I think she would just be scared to go to strangers houses.  She went as Mulan from one of the Disney movies.  It looked a lot like a Geisha outfit.  It was long sleeved and had a long skirt so she was able to wear pants and a shirt under it without even noticing.  She very much so enjoyed the candy, most of it is already gone. 

Watched Mr. Brooks last night with Kevin Costner, really good movie with lots of twists to throw you off.  Watched The Reaping tonight, which as far as a cult/horror movie was pretty good.  It had Hilary Swank in it.