Skeeter Night

Tuesday's and Thursdays are Skeeter Night! I go to my sister's house directly from work, mooch their food and play with little Reed. The kid is loved, no doubt about it and there are many folks who consider him their special one. I like to think he loves me best...and so far no one has proved me wrong. He always has a big smile for me. Reed looks at his sock covered feet then to me. And again. And again.... Obviously he is saying, "come on Aunt Kay, take these off and kiss my piggies!" So I do, because who can refuse such a beseeching request, even if it is just wishful thinking on my part.

And we have rules. Just a few so far, but important ones.

1. You don't put your fingers up Aunt Kay's nose, she won't put her finger's up yours.
2. Don't pee on Aunt Kay! (Usually quickly recited in a high pitched voice while changing a diaper.)
3. Hair! Hair! We don't pull hair!
4. Piggies must be free! (Actually, our mantra as the socks are whipped off.)

The list will be growing, I'm sure... I see the day coming when we have to add such items as "Don't eat the yellow snow" or "We don't play with the litter box!" But not yet.

Skeeter and I play, sing songs and his parents laugh at me more than a little. I always stay too long. I try to start leaving at around 8:00 pm, but he will be extra cute, or my sister will change the subject and we keep talking or something..and before you know it, it's time for Skeeter's bath. You can't leave during nakie baby time! So I stay for bath time, and help put him in his PJ's. I don't end up leaving until 10:00.

Evil genius that sister of mine...she always finds a way to keep me there.

Mermaid Sighting

Fresh pictures of little G. How can one little body take up so much bed!!

Below we have a sign she posted on her bedroom door. The translation was done by my brother.

Aye Matey! There be a mermaid about! The costume is a part of the Halloween/birthday package from Aunt Kay and Grandma. She loves to dress-up so I purchased two costumes the mermaid and a medieval maiden ("That's a PRINCESS dress" my brother insists.)

He said she liked the mermaid costume best. What do you think?

She feels quite gypped by having feet instead of a tail. My brother explained that we are primates, but she is unconsoled. Nobody gave her a vote.

Apparently, she sleeps in it too.

That will be a katrillion dollars to fix the thingamajunk on your car, Ma’am…

I loath having to have any work done on my car. I am sure that “clueless car-phoebe” is in blinking neon on my forehead on those dreaded instances when I have to take my car in. The thing is, its not totally because I’m a girl, because my brother has the same problem. I think its because there was no person who fiddled or tinkered with cars in the house when we were children after 1980. That is the year my father died. He was a friggin genius! First guy in his town to go to college, graduated THE top of his class from Michigan Technological University. He was an engineer with Oldsmobile. There were several summers where they sent him to Georgia to figure our why machinery in whole plants weren’t working properly. He was never happier then solving a problem or making a machine more efficient. Nobody in my neighborhood called repairmen, they called my Dad. The winter after he died there was a flood of new repair worker immigration into a neighborhood that had formally been a “plumber’s crack” free zone.

So I had to have my brake light repaired. At least that’s what the nice police officer that only gave me a warning instead of a ticket had said. While I had to be in my least favorite place, I was going to be sensible and have the rear window defrost fixed too. My car is small enough that I CAN keep the rear window clear by blasting the heater on high…but in order to do so I sit in the front seat sweating bullets. Verrry attractive and comfortable! The estimate for the brake light was $68.00, but the estimated reattaching of the bracket that had become dislodged from the rear window was $350.00! No, no…typing it like that is too tame…THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS. I had gone to the dealership because I HAD been ripped off in the past from smaller independent shops, what was this? (I figure the fact that the dealership wants to sell me my next car will help to keep honesty within my grasp.) But I NEEDED to have them fixed…. So I said to proceed.
In the end, The agent I dealt with had been conservative, and the estimate too high. My cost was only $98.00, total. The moral of my story should probably be something about facing fear or trying to be more informed, but no. I totally lucked out and next time the auto repair gods will have their vengeance, I'm sure of it. God I hate to have my car fixed!

Happy Birthday!

There have just been three important birthdays in my family, all within 5 days. On Friday 11/9 my newest BBF Skeeter turned 4 months old. Two days later on 11/11 my other BFF Georgie turned 9 years old, and tomorrow on 11/13 my "other" brother, the father of Skeeter, (AKA brother-in-law) turns 34. In honor of this, I would like to share some pictures of cute little Skeeter, lovely G and new dad E.

With the exception of Skeeter in his Halloween costume, the pictures were all taken this past July. Skeeter was new, G was visiting from Taipei, and E still remembered what sleeping through the night was like. Happy Birthday!!!

Henry had the snott beaten out of him yesterday...

He is one of the cats previously mentioned. He is huge, orange and white, and if he had his own set of thumbs to operate the back door, he wouldn't need me at all. Except when he is hurt. Then he is a big fat baby...

I washed his wounds with soap and water, mostly to determine how badly he was hurt and if I needed to be late to work and hustle him to the vet. I've had cats since I was six, and I can handle most minor cat injuries myself. A little wound on his hind foot, a puncture on his ear was the source of most of the blood, and a lot of little scrapes. I think the greatest wounding was to his pride, not from being thoroughly whomped, but from the indignity of my first-aid skills. That boy bitched me out! I bundled him up and he slept for almost 18 hours. Two hours ago he was begging to go outside again. Guess he has a grudge to settle. It will have to wait for another day, at least until he has stopped limping.

I have five cats in all, and that is more than plenty. Three is my "happy cat" number, but seven years ago I found a stray who was too wonderful not to save. She had obviously been someones pet. Friendly, skinny, de-clawed, and (I thought) fixed, she ended up having 4 babies on my brand new (purple) Egyptian cotton sheets. After years of finding homes for kittens, I had run out of friends needing cats and could only find homes for half the kittens. Let me tell you, the potty box gets full fast with 6 cats. Three years ago we lost the the oldest mamma cat, she was 18. She had originally been my sister's cat, but when she moved into an apartment, Tootsie didn't adapt to high-rise living as an indoor cat. She spent three days under the guest bed yowling. Constantly. Finally B called me, begging me to take her back. Tootsie never forgave her for those three days. When we finally had to put her down, B, her husband E and I took her in. The Vet asked who's cat she was, and simultaneously we all said "Mine!" So now I'm "down" to five cats.

Oddly enough for someone who has had cats for most of her life, I don't like all cats. I love MY cats. I raised them right. They make me laugh. So call me a cat snob, but please god, DO NOT call me the cat lady! :)

What the heck! Why not purple?

What do you name a blog? I have been reading other's blogs and thought it might be interesting to have one of my own. Today seems to be THE day to start, and so WHAT do you call it? Don't want it to be too pretentious, I don't take myself that seriously. But I don't really want to seem a twitty 14 year old....not that being a twitty 14 year old is bad. I personally believe being a twit should legally only be allowed to the very young, and I no longer qualify. Should be something related to me...name it after the cat? Which one? (yes, I have oodles of cats, but that is definitely a subject for later :) After the new nephew or the older niece? While they are two of the cutest kids on the planet (no argument, EVER!) and I shall be writing about them, they are not the center of my world all the time. Okay, how about a color....my favorite color is purple, what the heck! Why not purple?