Soft cello case storage

I have a soft cello case that I use on occasion when I need to transport my cello but have weight or size issues that preclude using my usual hard case. As much as possible, though, I avoid using it in winter, because it offers very little thermal protection. I don't have a great option for storing it when it's not in use, so I am sorry to say that since last winter it has laid in a balled-up heap on my basement floor.

It occurred to me that there was a better option to using it as a litterbox-challenged cat attractant - I could hang it up in a closet. Amazing really, how long it takes me to come up with these brilliantly obvious ideas.



I never do anything here without the aid of my able assistants.



Yes, everything must be carefully inspected to meet exacting technical specifications.



The hanger is secured in the wide bottom of the case by closing the opposing zippers, meant to accommodate the endpin.



And voila, a storage solution that will foil all but the most determined cat.

First snow

Yes, truly. We got the deck furniture inside and stored this morning in the nick of time, then I ran off for the last session of my weekend Barry Green seminar.

Winter. Bleh.

Complications

We have greatly enjoyed our finally-discovered local farmers market for the last couple of months. In addition to the usual vegetables, berries, and now apples, I scored some wonderful maple syrup, and know where I can find locally produced honey. And every week there are flowers, huge bunches for $5.

Four weeks ago I bought a couple of monochromatic bunches that included eucalyptus, cat tails, and these wonderful spiny green globes. After enjoying them in water for a couple of weeks, I dumped the water and let them dry in place. I figured I'd have a lovely dried arrangement for the winter but then...



One of those green globes popped open to reveal a pod full of fluffy white seed parachutes. Agh! Unless I want the house to look like Cottonwood Canyon, that is simply not going to work.

This morning I discarded my "flowers," and not a moment too soon. What are those green things, anyway?

Winter is coming

I remember it, the day the weather changed. It was the day after Labor Day, and I felt compelled to wear socks for the first time in months. I'm a little hazier on First Jacket Day, but it was pretty darn close to the first day of Fall. Two days ago I used my seat heater for the first time. And today I almost didn't get up, the dreary gray rainy morning failing to give me any light cues whatsoever.

Local road crews are working feverishly in these last remaining days of the season known around here as Winter-Is-Coming. It was almost impossible to get around this past weekend, with two of the three major east-west routes closed at the same time, and the third still in the middle of a multi-year construction project. Sheesh.

As bleak as the outlook for the coming days, though, I can say one thing with confidence. No matter the weather, there will be one warm nose in this house.

Naps 'n Piles

David posted a photo of two of the boyz participating in a Nap Off a few days ago. This is my entry in the Best of Napping competition.

(Thanks to the generous person who donated this particular donut to our rescue group. The kittens love it.)

I had the mixed experience of returning the Johnsons to the shelter today. Hopefully they will all find a wonderful home, and maybe even some together. Please send some purrs and prayers and white light in their direction - there have been an awful lot of kittens this season, and new homes are tight.

It's amazing I get any work done at all

The rewards are worth it though.

You can't see much, but turn up the volume on this video. You can just hear my blood pressure coming down.

Boo!

Lest there be any doubt about how that little black tortie got her name.

Bad kitty

Sometimes I forget that these littles can't be trusted.

Bad Boo!

Little Buddy

In the midst of all my weekend cat sitting, I managed to do three productive things: one workout, one practice, and stripping and washing the bed. John usually naps on the bed, and when the blankets are off of it, he adapts. Here he is, teaching little Spuddy how nice a pile of blankets can be.

Usually John joins me in bed in the late wee hours of morning, so I wake up with him curled against my side. This morning, there was John, with his little buddy Spud curled up next to us both, purring.

How sweet is that?

Frick and Frack

OK, so tell me... Can you tell them apart?

This photo points out one slight difference that I had thought I noticed, but wasn't sure of. One frickerfrack consistently squints a little with his left eye, and the other with his right. A pretty subtle difference. The other thing that you can't notice in the picture is that one has a soft, gentle voice, and the other a loud, vigorous one. Now if I can just match the voice to the squint preference.

I just want a hug

Yesterday was the big day - the Vanalikalikes and Spud were spayed and neutered. This is Puddin recovering from anesthesia. See her pretty little ladygardenectomy incision? The little boys barely notice that their tiny hoo-hahs were nipped in the bud, but the girls usually take a good day to bounce back. Puddin is still wincing when I move her this morning, so I'll go get her one more dose of pain meds before I get on with today's activities...

Which include the semi-emergent replacement of my hot water heater. Usually I have time to worry about the kittens while they are in surgery, but yesterday I was preoccupied with the plumber and a mini-flood in the mechanical room. If it's not one thing, it's another.