GetSheila

As if the 1%ers didn’t have a bad name already

Dear Cheryl in Bend, Oregon:

I’m so glad my sister Karen was able to help you obtain your new dog from California, a sweet blue Queensland heeler.

After paying $200 to the breeder/trainer in California, I can see how the idea of paying another $600 to have the dog transported up to you in Bend would have been rather daunting. So lucky Karen was heading back to Idaho from Central California so you could save some money!

I must admit, I worked Karen rather hard down here. Our 84 year old mother has been ill so I moved her in with me and Karen and I spent a week and a half clearing out her house. Three dumpsters, many truck loads back and forth to my house, and a giant pile o’ garage sales items later, we had it done. Then came the washing of the kitchen items we were keeping, laundering of mom’s stored clothing, and organizing my garage and house so everything would have a place. Whew!

Karen had a lot to take back with her after clearing out mom’s house, so we strategically packed her car to the gills. Even so, she had to leave some things behind to make room for your dog but the gas money from you would help defray some of the cost of the trip so it was a sacrifice she was willing to make.

Imagine her surprise when the “gas money” you gave her was a mere $10. TEN DOLLARS. For transporting a dog, in the back seat of her car, over 500 miles from Modesto, CA to Bend, OR at a total of over 9 hours.

She saved you $600 in transport fees – or the alternative of having to spend your personal time and money to drive down to California and return home with the dog – and all you thought it was worth was $10? 500 miles at the IRS standard mileage rate of $0.51 equals $255. AND you were disgruntled you had to drive 15 extra miles to meet her at your mutual friend’s house rather than CostCo because, after all, she had only just driven ten and a half hours with two dogs and a car full of childhood memories so what would another 15 miles have been (plus another 15 to get back to the friend’s house?)

You live in Bend, OR so you are financially well off. Poor people don’t live in Bend. Neither do they spend $200 for a dog nor contemplate spending $600 to transport it. Your ungracious behavior in this matter and disrespectful treatment of your fellow human being is appalling. Shame on you!

At the very least, please immediately send Karen a check for $190 which, combined with the $10 “gas money” you gave her, amounts to the same fee you paid for the dog. That would be fair and right and still save you $400 in transport fees.

If you choose not to do so, please explain how you came up with a figure of $10 as equitable compensation for the service Karen provided for you. She was too nice – and too tired – to argue with you. Also kind of hard to do so from the shower since you showed up while she was washing the travel away and couldn’t be bothered to wait for her to get out to introduce yourself and properly thank her.

Do the right thing. Or prove the unwashed 99% masses right. Your choice.

Regards,

Sheila Livingston

 

Technorati Tags: karen,1%

My sis is here from Idaho!

I won’t post a picture of my sister Karen yet because we are both sitting here in our PJ’s with sleepies in our eyes and unbrushed teeth. But I CAN post a picture of my niece-dog Jesse:

She is adorable and sweet and very fun and loving.

However…

…my cats are not pleased.

Tiger took the high road:

Turvy took the low, squish into the smallest, safest space he could find, road:

That’s the space between my headboard and the wall, by the way.

Poor, freaked out kitties. Little do they know, Jesse is just as terrified of them as they are of her.

 

Technorati Tags: turvy,tiger,jesse,karen,family visit

Addict

I, uh, think I may have a slight addiction problem.

Yes, I really do use all three of them at once sometimes.

Please ignore the cat behind the screen. Or not. He’s probably part of the problem.

Do, however, note the fingerprint smudges on the laptop screen. Going back and forth between a touch screen and having to use a mouse takes some coordination, which I don’t always have.

Reminds me of the time my friend JennBo lathered up her hands with soap in a public restroom and kept thrusting them under the spigot trying to trigger the faucet’s IR sensor before she realized it was the kind you have to turn on manually. Thanks for making me smile, JennBo.

 

Technorati Tags: techno addict,addicted to thegrid

We need an office pet

Seriously, we need an office cat. I would take full responsibility for the litter box and the feeding and stuff.

Life is much too simple without a cat jumping up on your desk and interfering with your typing, or standing smack in front of the monitor so you can’t see anything on the screen, or laying on the papers strewn across your desk because something located on top of something else hence must be laid upon.

I suppose a dog would be nice, too, but dogs are much more high maintenance. Though having something warm and furry curled up under my desk would be rather nice. And there’s that whole unconditional love thing you don’t always get with a cat.

Both of the partners have pets at home yet seem strangely resistant to an office pet. They keep muttering things like “not professional” and “hair everywhere” and “the smell.”

Party poopers.

 

Technorati Tags: critters,office pet,office cat,animals at the office

Houston Zoo

Have you discovered Houston Zoo yet? I stumbled across them on NatGeo’s 3-part Zoo Confidential series, discovered they have a blog (actually, they have several) and are on Facebook. I probably would have lost interest quite soon but no, they had to go and start having contests.

First it was the FotoFriday Caption Challenge, where every Friday they post a photo of an adorable animal doing something funny and you put your best caption on it, and now they want you to help name the new baby orangutan. Hurry! They’re only taking name suggestions through April 10th.

And by “contests” I mean you don’t win anything other than having your name posted as the winner, a runner-up, or an honorable mention. But hey, for anyone with narcissistic tendencies (hello me!) that is quite enough.

Check ‘em out!

 

Technorati Tags: houston zoo,zoo confidential,houston zoo blogs,contests,cute animal photos

So finicky

They need to create a cat food that is just gravy, for cats like mine who lick every bit of liquid possible and leave the chunky meat-like substance all naked and sad in the bottom of the bowl.

I tried getting pate-like food, thinking they didn’t like the chunks but they lick that to death, too, just for the teensy bit of liquid in it. They may ingest a little bit of the food while licking the mound for the moisture, but it is purely accidental.

I even tried leaving the food out all day thinking they just didn’t like it fresh out of the can. All I got was a house that smelled like I left a bowl of wet cat food out all day when I got home. With crusty dried bits. Yuck.

I read there is an all-gravy food you cat get through your vet that has the requisite nutrition but I can’t find any more info about it. Perhaps The Greatest Vet in the World will read this and respond. (You know who you are.)

In the meantime, perhaps mashing or blending with added water is in order.

 

Technorati Tags: critters,gravy cat food

Day 27 - Pets

Dear GOD, what would we do without pets?

I realize some of you are not pet people. I don’t understand you – AT ALL – but I realize you exist, though it must be a pale, lifeless existence without something furry or hooved or winged to brighten it.

I suppose I should include “scaly” and “cold blooded” in there for you amphibian and snake people, but I don’t understand you either. I like small furry things alive and running around, not as live food for my pet. Gross!

I started as a dog person because we had two dogs when I was a child. Then my sister Karen became old enough to start bringing things home, like guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, rats, mice, bunnies, chickens (yes! in town!), horses (she boarded that one out on a ranch, thank god), more dogs, and finally cats.

Did I mention my sister is highly allergic to everything? I don’t remember her being so when we were younger. Maybe it was prolonged exposure to pet overload that did it. She’s fine now, though. She recently had the shots over a period of time and – poof! – no more allergies. I’m so happy for her. Now she has a indoor dog! And a husband with allergies. But hey, now we know there are shots for that.

The cats stuck. They clean themselves, don’t demand to be walked, tend to entertain themselves, and sleep 18 hours a day. What’s not to love? Here are my most recent companions:

That’s Tiger in the underwear drawer and Turvy pretending to ignore him but alert for the slightest indication of a stealth attack. Which will come, eventually. It always does.

I will always have pets. Requirement for a male companion: must love cats. Though there is room for a dog or two in my life.

 

Technorati Tags: 30 days of me,critters

Napalm in the morning

This is what happens when Tiger, aka Barf Boy, realizes he’s about to throw up and tries to run away from it:

 

Yes, Tiger, all that really did come out of little ole you.

(You’re welcome.)

 

Technorati Tags: tiger,cat throws up food

Cats make you lazy

It’s hard to get anything done when you’re surrounded by this:

 

 

And this:

 

It’s a miracle I got all the laundry done before I succumbed to the napping.

 

Technorati Tags: critters,kitties,cats,tiger,turvy,cat nap

Cats are hazardous to your health

I fell flat on my face the other night. I blame the cats.

I got up to turn the thermostat down but didn’t bother to turn on a light because it’s only a few steps from my bedroom and has its own internal illumination.

Then I fell down.

Here’s why:

I forget the cats use the hallway as a racetrack and I no longer use mats to keep the rugs in place because, frankly, they don’t.

The only thing I hurt was my pride – and my big toe – though I did get a bit of revenge when I inadvertently hit this on the way down:

The cats already run when the regular doorbell rings so you can imagine the panic that ensued when the chimes started clanging into each other willy nilly at 2 am.

Revenge is sweet.

I don’t know why I was surprised at the rug incident. After all, this is how I often found the rug in my bedroom when I lived with my sister:

Actually, I think I inadvertently trapped a kitty in the closet and this was a silent plea for help, but you get the idea.

Needless to say, I no longer have rugs in the hallway.

 

Technorati Tags: cats,cat antics,kitties,cats and rugs