Monday, June 28, 2010

End times????

What a freaking few days it has been! First off, the other day we had an earth quake. Today, funnel cloud over the West Island. Also last week a tornado touched down in Ontario, same day as earthquake I think. WTF! There is a reason I do not live south of the border...ok...many reasons...and two of them are earthquakes and tornados. You all need to keep that shit down there where its expected.

Between crazy weather, earth quivers, and oily oceans I am really starting to wonder if that friggin' Mayan calendar was right. Maybe I should just hide under my bed until things settle down and its January 2013...except its nasty under there and its way too humid to even think of making the effort.

Speaking of efforts, my quilt is at a stand still until I buy fabric and get my machine tuned up AGAIN. Today's crazy mini hurricane blew down my bean trellis so I have to put it back together tomorrow and secure it somehow. I steeked my Kria sweater project and because of my effed up sewing machine, the machine stitching broke and let go in places and I had to do a crochet reinforcement that looks like total ASS and I am not sure some of the loose ends won't let go along the steek line. My formerly soothing p[ractice of embroidery has turned on me because for some reason the cosmic forces will NOT allow me to create a frikkin' French Knot no matter how hard I try and re-read the instructions. You'd think i was trying build a rocket or something, but those damn knots just will not knot!!! ARGH!

And its not even July yet....wow. It may prove to be one pippin sansy of a summer!!


PS: does anyone know how to keep spammy commenters at bay?

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Summertiiime, and the livin' is...sweaty

We have high humidity the last couple days and while the temps are not extreme, they feel very squishy and sweaty. Bleah. I do NOT like to sweat. I think I would be very happy living up north in the chillier lands but the gardening would not be so nice.

Was wakened from the last of my sleeping in of the day by screaming cats and flying fur in my bed. Not pleasant at all. Mouche had attacked Miss Kitty while she and I were sleeping. This is just getting nerve wracking, this hate he has for her. I have a spray bottle now for when he gets near her in the living room, where she usually hangs out. How can such a sweet lovable Mouchey guy who plays with a kitten so nicely, be such a turd to my poor old lady cat. She actually tried to run away this week but the neighbors whose house she was lurking around brought her home (after I'd given her up for gone having checked the shelter for her to no avail), thats how much he's getting on her nerves. At least by keeping HER in the house (oh she is NOT pleased)we can protect her more while this sorts itself out. But WILL it? sigh. I don't want to send Mouche away but if he doesn't cut the shit it may come down to that.

I haven't been knitting much except for apple cores for the AppleCore Blanket pattern. These things are addictive...fast(now that I've memorised the pattern), light, uses leftovers (except that I also bought yarn for them which wasn't supposed to happen), did I mention fast? Practically instant gratification, knitting wise. Besides this I have been re-introducing myself to embroidery. O.M.G. This is a very soothing occupation. I find myself getting lost in the simple stitches I am using for my first project in YEARS!!!! Its a spray of wild roses on unbleached fine cotton for a quilt I have in mind for my grand neice Annika. But first I need to finish the lingering blue and yellow log cabin quilt thats been on the go for about 8 years. Its been going much faster in recent months but is currently lingering on my dining room table and serving as a cat mat. LOL Both Mouche and Pippin love sprawling out on it for a snooze.

We are on our second FULL day of vacation here and while the urge to kill has not risen sharply, there are moment when I understand why wild animals will sometimes eat their young. The squabbling brought on by constant association with one another....the sassing back.....the whining.....the tantrums.... I need some good earplugs and some stronger drugs to withstand the next 2 months.

Monday, June 21, 2010

Kitten naming redux


The name "Sansy" just has not been a hit. It just doesn't roll off the tongue and the guys were resistant. The hunt for a name never ended, even after he'd been named. I guess we knew it wasn't THE name for this complex individual. Today we were trying Jasper because the balck stripes on his face remind me of the polished stone but it wasn't it either.

Kate the Enabler suggested Peregrine, as in Peregrine Took aka Pippin from LOTR and I think we have our name. Fun loving, mischievous, lovable, sweet, curious, troublemaking FOOL OF A TOOK! We have our name and it is Pippin
.

Thursday, June 17, 2010

Perturbation

We are very perturbed here. The pump on our washer is finished and needs replacing. Cost is, as yet, unknown until repair dude calls with the quote. Having him tell us what we already knew cost us over 70$.

Yup..perturbation. We have it. Don't think we'll go blind from it though.

The saving graces of hobbying

I don't understand people that don't have a passtime or hobby interest. What do they do in their spare time???? What do they dream and plan and hope for? To me its just weird and seems like a very empty existance. Also, those people that I have know with no "interest" or "hobby" are very unhappy people.

Now, that said, there are those of us who may or may not have what some consider TOO MANY hobbies or interests and are these people really much happier than those with none? maybe not because they never seem to get anything done. A balance must be struck.

All this to say that I am GLAD I have something to do and live for besides whining and navel gazing. To whit, I segue to the garden and its goin's on. And it does have it goin' on.

This year I used seeds for German Giant radishes and I have had THE BEST radishes ever. Yearly I bitch and moan about how mine never do well for such an easily grown vegetable. Not this year. I am in ecstacies over my yield and the quality. Its German Giant from now on in this garden! Woo hoo!

The spinach is ready to be picked as are the "baby"salad greens. They are lush from the recent rains. The shelling peas continue to dawdle along. They are so hard to wait for after growing snow peas.

Something ate off all my bean seedlings again this year. I think its a neighborhood squirrel or something from how they were nipped of at the top over night leaving nothing but a stem. Something else nommed away all my watermelons but one poor plant. I think it was slugs or some type of bug. Nothing is hurting the last plant...weird.

Yesterday, 6 tomato plants were set into their summer homes. 3 Superfantastic and 3 Principe Borghese to be trellised against the shed wall. After that I started setting in the peppers and it began to rain. I got 12 in, I think, before I gave it up. I also popped in my 3 cucumber seedlings and ringed them heavily with ground coffee for protection from evil bugs/slugs/snails.

Next up for plantings, more radishes and peas and a replanting of the bush beans. Maybe another watermelon or two as well.

See? How can a person not find solace from the everyday blahs of life without a passtime?? Once my washer is fixed I will be hitting the quilt doings again.

Monday, June 14, 2010

Because Kitties Make Things less Crappy








And thats what get's me through...most days.

Wednesday, June 09, 2010

Just when you think everythings ok....

...A letter arrives to throw everything back into the misery it was 3 months ago. ARGH!!!

Anyway, just a note to say we've hit a new patch of pain in the ass. Things were going so well too!! Thats what upsets me most. Life was getting bacxk onto an even keel, we were free from the corporation, new opportunities had arisen....and now corporation is being bitchy. Its like they missed having someone to pick on so they decided to ring our bells for some shits and giggles.

In the perfect world that I envision this will simply be a pain in the ass and will be resolved in our favour because right is right and thats it. Unfortunately, in the real world, you do something you think is right and you get smacked down for it because someone with the power is suspicious of motives and just can't leave something alone. It doesn't matter that you didn't do anything wrong. You've made them look bad/ineffective/stupid/negligent and now you must pay.

Pray for me because my nerves have just about had it.

Sunday, June 06, 2010

Pleased.

I wish I had a photo to accompany this post. I will later cuz Ben just took one.

I am pleased as punch to announce that the nameless kitten has a name now. It came to me as I was facebooking about doing nothing with the kitten on the sofa...again. I referred to him as le petit Monsieur Sans Nom (The little Mr. No Name) and it hit me right then....Sansy. I will pronounce it with an accent to both be pretentious and creative, so its said like this : Sahwn-zee.

Voila...he has a name and it is Sansy. YAY!!!

Saturday, June 05, 2010

The 5th of June

Its a pretty low key day here. Its over cast and not terribly hot. The Hman is gone fishing for the weekend and the kids are gaming with a pal downstairs.

I've had a week of pinched nerve in my left shoulder but feel on the mend thanks to my teriffic chiropractor. I have a contract to finish up this week, so I have been working from home as well as at an office in Montreal on some text writing. Its been a more difficult task than the last time.

Last Sunday I brought home the wee tawny tabby with white kitten that I'd committed to before Mouche came along. He is adorable and lovable and cuddly as all get out. Yet, he is still Nameless. Nothing monikeristic is coming out and sticking to him. It is bugging the shit out of me. Have I mentioned his adorability? I think I could just walk around with him around my neck all day. He is always near by, especially if we are on the sofa. If not then he's racing through the house and up the cat tree, soon to be back with the humans on the sofa. Like today...he and I have been couch potatoes for ages. If I get up, he tends to follow, do whatever, and if I go back then he comes back too. Last night he kept me company while I watched The Wolman from the basement sofa. Such a sleepy cuddly wee baby. 11 weeks old now. Still without a name. I've tried everything. It'll come eventually I guess.

Thats about it for us this week. So boring!!