There's a new, temporary addition to our household. His name is Deoji (Deo for short), and he's a sweet, 7 year old, yellow lab. He's a BIG boy. He's easily got 20 pounds on Sadie.

Our friend R2's ex-girlfriend said that she could no longer take care of him (after 5 years), and dropped him off at his house. He was excited to have him back, until his current girlfriend started having some pretty severe allergic reactions to him. :(

So, he's staying at our house until we can find him a good home. (We're hoping by the end of this week. 3 big dogs in a house the size of ours is...well...crowded and chaotic.)

So yeah, I know a few of you are local, or within a couple of hours drive, so if you can give a good dog a good home, or know someone who can, holla. He's great with kids, and is getting along well with our dogs and cats. (Our dogs weren't too sure about him at first, but they warmed up pretty quickly. They're not used to dogs with balls, lol.)


( I'm so unique, apparently I don't even have my own name... )

Under the cut are some photos Ryan took when Ed was over one day last week.

( clicky for piccies )

Last weekend, Ryan and I went to Kenosha, his home town, because his band was playing a gig at his Aunt's brother's bar there. We ended up going down Friday night to spend an extra night with his family.
( Read More...Image Heavy... )

I had posted about having my two long haired cats, Rowdy and Doxy, shaved-and I promised to try and take some pictures.

Sadie being re-introduced to the newly shaved Rowdy, AKA "The Dude", and now AKA "Mr. Legwarmers", and now AKA "Man Boobs", lol:



( Shaved Pussies! (That never stops being funny to me!) )

Not THAT kind of pussy, you perv.

Yesterday, we took our two long haired cats, Rowdy and Doxy, to the vet for their annual shots and their first annual shaving. Yes. Shaving. I had my precious pussies shaved. We've always struggled to keep up with grooming them properly, and as a result, their coats tend to end up dread-lock-y and matted. This summer, it got to the point of being beyond what we could handle on our own. (I decided that when I was working on Rowdy, and the mats were so close to the skin that I inadvertantly cut his skin.) I was feeling like a horribly neglectful kitty-mama, until the vet said this was nothing, she sees much worse on a regular basis. (So now I feel like a semi-neglectful mama, not a horribly neglectful one.)

Anyway, Rowdy behaved marvelously and allowed them to shave, bathe, and groom him without a fuss. (Good boy!) Doxy, on the other hand, had to be tranquilized. :-( (She is a very "special" kitty, but that's a story for another day.) They were happy to see me when I picked them up, which was a pleasant surprise. I thought they'd be PISSED. They seem to be perfectly happy being rid of all that hair.

When I got them home and unloaded them from their carriers, it was the funniest damn thing I've seen in a long time. Cute-funny, but hilarious. They don't shave their face or their legs, so they are bald from their neck down to their butt, and have just a small tuft on the ends of their tails. (Doxy's looks especialy funny, since she just has a nub for a tail.) So, they still have their big furry heads, but they're on these naked little bodies!! We've taken to calling Rowdy "Leg Warmers", because he looks like he has huge fuzzy gray leg warmers on. I'm also calling him "Man Boobs", because he has this almost-human way of sitting, and without all that fur, he totally has man-boobs when he sits like that!

The other two cats (Nala and Cana, short-haired) just don't know WHAT to think. They seem to think we took Rowdy and Doxy away and brought two totally different cats back in their place. (Though I think that's more the smell of the vet's office that they're reacting to, and not the lack of hair.)

I'm just glad that we can start from scratch and stick to a proper grooming schedule, to prevent having to put them through that again. To all of you with pussies, don't slack on the grooming!

I'll try to get pictures this weekend so you can all enjoy the silly-cuteness.

Note to self: Need kitty icon!

Apparently, he prays while he naps. Multi-tasking at its finest. :p



If post-surgical incisions make you queasy, you may not want to view the last two pictures under there.

( 4 Images under the cut )

Yesterday was a lovely day, so I spent the majority of it out working in my yard. Yard/Garden clean-up 2006 is nearly complete. My spring/summer/fall 3 inch strip of sun tan/burn right above my butt crack is already in full effect. :)

I was thrilled yesterday to find (  that my first tulip had bloomed. )

Sadie (my largest critter) has taken a liking to humping Cana (my smallest critter).

I think the most interesting thing about this is that Cana doesn't seem to mind.

On Saturday, while I was cleaning my house, I noticed two of my cats snuggled up to each other in the corner of the bathroom (of all places!). We usually keep the bathroom door closed, so they think it's some kind of treat to be in there. Anyway, they looked so cute that I grabbed the camera and snapped a picture, and then I decided to wander around my house and see what the rest of the critters were up to.

( You can see too! )

Yesterday was Emily and Dave's 5 year wedding anniversary. They called from New Mexico to check on how their critters are doing, and they are having an amazing time. Yesterday, Emily got to take a tour of Georgia O'Keefe's house. (Georgia is Emily's favorite artist.) Apparently they have left it exactly as it was; Emily said the view from her bedroom is incredible. What an experience for her!

I reassured her that her dog (Leesha) and cat (Sophie) are doing well, despite missing their mommy and daddy very much. Leesha gets so excited when she sees me with the leash. She does what I've termed the "Leesha Leash Dance". She turns two circles, runs to the fence and back, turns two circles, runs to the fence and back, then sits still for me to attach the leash to her collar. She prances like a little princess on her walks.

I'm excited to see all their pictures when they get back. They lived in New Mexico for a couple years a while back. I had gone to visit them over the 1999 New Year. (The last time I flew anywhere.) They're re-visiting many of the places they had taken me, and hearing about them again made me wish I was there! She insists that Ryan and I MUST go along the next time they go back. Twist my arm!

I'm afraid I might be developing one of the most uncomfortable and unpleasant side effects a woman can encounter while on antibiotics. See, the problem with antibiotics is that in addition to killing BAD bacteria, they kill GOOD bacteria too. Women have very important good bacteria in their womanly parts that keep things, well, how they should be. Blech. I stop drinking, and my body falls apart. I'm trying to convince myself one has nothing to do with the other.

I'm probably the only one keeping track, but I've been alcohol free for 5 straight days. (Incidentally, I've been orgasm free for equally as long, UTIs make sex and masturbation very uncomfortable!) Other than a persistent head ache (and of course a cold bug, UTI, and possibly some more yuckity-yuck-yuck-yuck) all is well. I'm tossing around the idea of having a drink or two on ONE of the nights this weekend, we'll see.

I have a morning ritual. Every morning, I remind myself that today is a new day, and that is has the potential to be the best day of my life, regardless of what happened yesterday. (Some people think that's a bunch of hooey, but it works for me.) I let the dogs out and do all my watering (which takes anywhere from a few minutes to 45 minutes, depending on how dry its been and what needs watering). I enjoy the peacefullness of the neighborhood at that hour (6 am). The birds greet me, the dogs are still a bit lazy after the night, no one is mowing or creating other loud noises. Its just me, my dogs, my flowers, the sunshine, and my hose.

Today, my day began with having to assist Sadie with her bowel movement. I hope that will teach her that its not a good idea to ingest bits of the tug rope. I also hope that's not the highlight of my day!

( Anniversary! )

Ryan was indeed surprised when he opened his birthday gift. And VERY excited. :) He was bragging about it all night long to anyone who would listen. All in all, I think he had a good birthday. I gave him a birthday flash in the morning. We ate at his favorite restaraunt for dinner. We went out to his favorite bars, and stopped at his friend Nick's place. Nick and Ryan share the same birthday, and Nick lives in the apartment that Ryan and I lived in for 3 years before we bought our house.

It was good to see friends and really crazy being in the old apartment again. I sort of learned how to play Texas Hold 'Em. I lost pretty quickly, but I think I get the game now, so that's a plus. I participated in a drunken cat rescue, and almost ended up with a 5th cat as a result.

Ryan had more than plenty to drink. He wasn't out of control or anything, but he tends to get extremely emotional when he drinks a lot, especially on occassions such as birthdays. He gets to thinking about his mom and his brother (both of whom passed on before I met him) and really needs a lot of comfort. I do my best to provide that comfort for him.

I took today off to recover from the birthday, and despite sleeping in and then going out for breakfast, I got a lot accomplished around the house. We're having a birthday party for Ryan and Nick on Saturday, so I'm trying to get it some what cleaned up and presentable!

Currently attempt number 2. I don't know WHY it is so difficult for me to post pictures, but it always makes me extremely stressed.  I now remember why I haven't posted any pictures in a while. Its a HUGE PAIN IN MY ASS!  But anyway, these are just some recent random pictures that I've been meaning to post, but haven't gotten around to.

 

I can't find the tulip pictures that I was going to post, which frustrates me a great deal, so I'll either find them later and post them, or take more ASAP, as they are already past their prime. :(

 

( click for critters, pastey whiteness, and lance )

If all goes according to plan, I'll be getting some new tattoos tonight, and a new pooch tomorrow. With all the excitement, I probably won't be very active on the internet this weekend. Just an FYI-for those who care, or are used to communicating with me on a daily or near daily basis. :)

Be prepared for TONS of pictures of both tats and critters when I return to full time posting. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

I made a new friend on my walk today. This precious little pup came barrelling across West Ave. (a busy street) toward me. She jumped up on me with her muddy little paws and it was love at first sight. I looked around for her human, but didn't see anyone, so I started asking her where her mama was, as though she could answer me. I'm no expert, but she appeared to me to have some pitbull in her, so I was kind of desperate to find her owner, because some people are mean to dogs with the kind of reputation that pitties have.

She had a collar on, but no tags. She either wasn't trained at all, or was trained with commands other than the ones I use with MY dog. She seemed to think "off" meant "Keep Jumping! Keep Jumping!" and "sit, stay" meant, "Come on! Follow me!" I think she would have followed me all the way back to work, had she not been distracted by a letter carrier!

So now, I'm back at work, with my pants covered in muddy paw prints, wondering if the precious poochie made it home okay. I wish people would be more responsible with their pets, especially on such busy streets!

2nd attempt at this post. (Level of frustration: High) I need a new computer. Or maybe my computer needs a new me. Either way, we're not getting along right now.

I had this really chipper and upbeat post going to share some pictures of some of my critters, but the mood is gone. The pictures are still cute though, so enjoy.

The first is one I just took of the healing princesses, Cana. Doxy is hiding, and NOT in the mood to have her picture taken.

This is me & my dog, Anka, taken by my husband Ryan, about half an hour ago. I was in a decidedly better mood at that moment.

When I woke up the other morning, the first thing I saw was Rowdy, my male cat, sleeping on the couch in this position:

Also from the other day (Ryan took it) a slumber party on the couch. I guess Nala wasn't invited, but the rest of the gang is there. Doxy is the one up on the back of the couch:

I'll work on getting a picture of Nala posted. She's terribly upset with me for leaving her out. SHE is the Queen of this castle, and she'll tell you so herself!

 

 

 

Due to current brain drain, this is going to be a lame, "here's what's up today" type of post. (Hey, at least I can admit it, right?)

Most importantly, thank you to those who kept my precious girls in your thoughts today. They are home safe now. Very woozy (so funny when they try to get up and walk somewhere, they just keep falling down. I shouldn't be laughing, but I can't help it.) but safe and sound. I made a nice little private and cozy "healing suite" for them so the other critters won't bother them and they can't get in to too much trouble. Their shaved bellies are so adorable, I just may take a picture of them.

Second (and last for now) day in a row driving to Decorah. I had people ticked at me over stuff that wasn't at all my fault (in fact it was me who helped FIX the problems), but I'm used to that. One of the ladies ACTUALLY came and apologized to me later, saying that she was sorry she took it out on me and knew it wasn't really my fault. So..that was nice.

I'm realizing more and more that the nicer I am to people, the nicer people are to me. I'm sure its always been that way, I'm just more aware of it lately. I don't know WHY I'm more aware of it, but I am. When you praise people for good behavior, they start to behave better in general.

I've been having lots of "what if" thoughts these past couple days. I came very close to attending college in Decorah, so being there, and driving by the school made me think how different my life would be if I HAD gone to school there. I probably would have never met my husband. I'd probably have a degree by now and be teaching music in a high school somewhere. But, who knows. Not me, and I never will, so why dwell on it? Right?

I'm looking forward to tonight. I'm a moderator on the ULC.net (Univeral Life Church) forum. We have a chat room there that's been really dead, so we're trying to liven it up a bit. I'm going to start hosting "Joella's Warm Fuzzies" on Wednesday nights at 7:00 PM Central Time.

I have NO idea what I'm going to do with it, since this just came about yesterday, but I'm starting tonight. Check out the site if you want to, its a cool place to discuss religion, spirituality, morals, politics, and all sorts of other topics. It is full of very interesting and smart people (as well as a few not so interesting and not so smart people, of course).

Here: http://forum.ulc.net/index.php?act=idx

If you tell 'em Joella sent ya, you better behave! :)