Days 272 through 278

Day 272: Inundated

This is the pile of mail that greeted us when we got home last night.  It's about half as big as the pile of paperwork on my desk when I returned to work.  I am thoroughly overwhelmed.  I have no idea where to even begin with everything I have to do now that I'm home.

Help!

Day 273: Glory in Imperfections

I got this penguin at the flea market in Cabo.  I picked him out amid a bunch of other, better looking, trinkets because I liked his little gimpy fin.  Being unique is something of which we all have the capability.  But here's the secret: you can't be unique when you're trying to be.  You can only pull it off when you are truly yourself - when you are no longer concerned with how you compare to others.

That is the challenge.

Day 274: The End of Something

Month 9 is complete!  That's right, I only have 3 months left!  The end is near...finally.

Today as I took pictures of the sunset, I was sad to know they would be the last pictures I took with this awesome lens I rented from Borrow Lenses.  I rented this same lens last summer for my family reunions, and I can't express how much I wish I didn't have to give it back.  It's too expensive for me to justify the purchase, but if I rent it any more times I will completely nullify that excuse.  The rentals aren't cheap, and soon I'll have paid the same amount in rental costs as I would have if I'd purchased the dang thing.

One day...

Day 275: The "Little" Things

I'm so glad RoseAnne came over tonight for our regularly scheduled girls night!  She was all dressed up for an appointment she had before she came over, and she looked so cute!  Jack was his usual adorable self, chasing the cats around the house in his speedy crawl, making faces at us, and being generally captivating for the camera.

I really love my family!

Day 276: Red Trees

I'm used to seeing trees turn red during the fall, but I'm not familiar with red trees with no leaves.  I saw these today in a parking lot and had to stop and capture them.  In the slanting winter sunlight, the bark on these trees shone a vivid red - almost fuchsia.  I wish I still had that lens I rented because it would have been able to capture these better.

Ah, well.  No use thinking about it.

Day 277: Note to Self

Note to self: put makeup on before taking an extreme close-up of your face.

If I had taken any other pictures today, I would have posted one of them instead.  This picture required an obscene amount of touch-up to make it even slightly acceptable, when all I needed to do was dab on a bit of cover-up and eyeliner before I hit the shutter button.  I guess I'm still shell-shocked from my return to work this week.  I can't believe how busy I was, and yet how little I got done!  So frustrating!  I guess all I can hope for is to do better next week.

Day 278: The Old Standby

Whenever you see a picture of my cats on here, you can almost be certain it's because I forgot to take a picture until right before I went to bed.  The cats seem to be my last resort subjects.  If I'm too tired to think of something original, I just run upstairs and snap a few of the cats and call it good.

I need a new standby I think.

Day 269: The Lion Sleeps Tonight

The king of the jungle and his girl.

Today was debarkation day on the ship.  We arrived at port in San Diego in the morning, and by 11am we were driving away.  It's sad to leave all the amazing people I met, but my vacation isn't over for a few more days, so I'm still flying high!

After Ryan's sisters picked us up at the pier, we went to the Wild Animal Park in San Diego.  There were so many beautiful animals there!  I had a really hard time choosing between all of the pictures I took this time because of it.  As a result, I've made a little collage of the runners up again.  It's below.

My favorite part of the day at the park I think was the Africa Tram ride we took in the safari park.  We got to see so many kinds of animals on that drive, and they were all just roaming free in this huge, miles-wide park.  It was an awesome site.

Day 227: Repeat

Jasper

I wasn't going to do another picture of my sister's cat tonight, but the other pictures I took today turned out horribly and I loved the way this one turned out.

So, there you go.  I win.

I'm glad it's officially the weekend.  I went out with my coworkers after work today and saw The Green Hornet on IMAX.  That was fun!  I don't really see the need for it to be 3D though.  That felt like a waste of energy, and a pain in my head (the glasses were too small).  But as for the movie, I thought it was hilarious - just as I was expecting - and I loved it!

Not too jazzed about the big guy sitting next to me though.  I got stuck next to a man who could have easily taken up two seats.  He was encroaching so far into my seat that I was leaning obnoxiously into my poor co-worker, Todd.  I mean, it's not like I'm a petite girl myself.  I needed all the space my little seat had to offer, so having to relinquish a third of it to some strange man did not make me comfortable.  Luckily for me Todd had room to spare in his seat since he's so small.

That's not the worst part though.  This guy would make an excellent candidate for Santa Claus because his entire body (not just his belly) shook like a bowl full of jelly every time he laughed.  Unfortunately, this also made my seat shake like a bowl full of jelly...but I was not laughing.

It did make for a memorable evening, so at least there's that. :)

Day 210: Cat Portrait...

Jasper

It's glamor shots for cats!

Actually, I was sitting in the living room with mom this afternoon after spending hours in front of my computer trying to finish a week's worth of backed up blog posts, and I noticed that Jasper was a acting kind of funny.  Dad was making some serious noise in the kitchen on some home improvement project, and Jasper was trying to nap unsuccessfully.  Every time dad would start the drill or hammer something, Jasper's eyes would get really big and he'd jump a little.  Then he'd immediately lay his head back down and try to sleep again.  This went on for several minutes before I decided to capture it.  Of course, I was as unsuccessful as Jasper, but it was fun trying.

Day 190: A Study of Light

Jasper

I resurrected my old strobe flash tonight.  I thought it was broken, but I wiggled a few wires, "rebooted" it by removing and replacing the batteries, and voilà!  It is reborn!

I'm a bit out of practice with the strobe flash, so I took it for a spin with Jasper.  He wasn't too happy about it, but being the good kitty that he is, he put up with it gracefully.  It took me a few tries to remember the settings I prefer, and the directions to face the flash when working with different different objects, but I think I've got it down again.

Now that I have the flash back, we'll see if it helps in future pictures, or if I'll just bury it away again.

Day 181: Home Again

Georgie

I'm home from vacation and back to the grindstone.  Yesterday's drive may have been grueling, but at least we got home safe and sound, without any accidents.  Plus, it made me appreciate my daily routine...as boring as it may be, it gives me a sense of stability.

And the cats in my house...they're excited for a return to routine as well.  :)

Day 164: Babysitting

Gracie

Kim is out of town this week and asked me to check on her cats yesterday and today.  Tonight when I came to check on them, they were so cute!  After I made sure they had enough food and fresh water (and after I cleaned out their litter box - ew), I found myself sitting on the living room floor, surrounded by the cats.

And I don't mean "surrounded" in the Catwoman sort of way (you know, that scene from Batman when the cats "surround" Catwoman and it looks like they're making a meal of her, when really they're just making her a bit crazy in the head?).  First of all, Kim doesn't have enough cats to recreate that scene - not nearly enough - and secondly, they weren't right next to me.

As I surveyed the room from my floor seat, I was able to spot a different cat in each corner.  All of them were sitting in different positions, but they were all making sure they were in the same room with me, which was so cute!  Lewis, who usually whines to death and doesn't let me pick him up, was the only one who wouldn't stay away from my side.  In fact, at one point - as I was taking this shot of Gracie, and positioned on my stomach to get the right angle - Lewis was laying on my legs.

It was fun to spend a little time with the kitties.  I've been feeling a bit down today, and seeing the cats made me feel a little better.  There is something so comforting about having a pet around!

Here are the other three cats (Cray wouldn't pose for me, so the best I got was his backside in the picture of Lewis):

 Lilly

Lewis

Day 110: Almost Alone

Jasper.

My mom thought of this picture idea and title, so I'm not sure how legal it is for me to put it on here since it wasn't my original thought, but whatever.

This is the last picture in my "Alone" theme.  Even though I was technically only alone the first 2 days of this week, I still tried to think of reasons I liked being alone, but frankly they were all a stretch - except for the first one.  This last picture is a testament to the fact that even though everyone else in the house may leave, our cats will always stay behind.  So no matter how alone I think I am, I've always got these guys trailing me around the house.  It's a nice feeling when I get bouts of loneliness or fear, to know that I can talk to the cat's and not feel quite as cuckoo as I would talking to myself.

Not quite.

As a side note, I took this picture of the sunset tonight, but it didn't go along with my theme.  This is the sun through the huge smoke cloud from the fires in Herriman.  Scary fire.

Day 89: Torturous Grooming

Georgie.

My poor cat!  I put her through the ringer tonight.  She is an Exotic Short-hair, which just means she's a cross between a Persian and a Tabby.  She's got a smushed face and THICK short fur.  My parents let her out during the day, and her favorite past-time outside is to roll around in the oil-soaked street.

Tonight when we were all sitting in the living room, I noticed how matted Georgie's fur was getting, and decided to brush it out (she HATES her fur being brushed, by the way).  So I bundled myself up in a coat for protection against her claws, grabbed the brush, and trapped Georgie in a vice grip with one arm while I tried to brush her out with the other.

OH MAN.  She had a FIT.  She hissed and spit and bit and scratched and SCREAMED as if I were torturing her to death.  She squirmed and kicked so bad that I nearly lost my grip a few times.  I finally had to enlist Christine's help, and while I held Georgie fast, Christine had to do the brushing.  We got a few of the rats nests out of Georgie's pelt before we decided to give her a break.  We put her in the bathroom (her favorite place) with her food to let her calm down.

I went in to check on her 20 minutes later, and found her huddled in the sink (her favorite sleeping spot), arms tucked in what looked like the fetal position, head ducked and ears lowered.  I felt so bad!  She looked so pitiful huddled in the sink like that, but when I moved to pet her, she lifted her head to meet my hand and purred when I scratched her neck.

I suppose all is forgiven, and I'm glad.  All I wanted to do was brush her coat.

Day 26: Food Envy

"Can I have some?"

This is a cat's version of begging.  Cats are much more passive aggressive than dogs.  Dogs will whine and try to jump on you and push their nose in your arm.  Whereas, cats just sit next to you and stare until you finally can't take the pressure and you give in.

And, if for some reason that tactic doesn't fly, our cats will resort to whining.  Which, in my opinion, is the fastest way to get them locked in the bathroom until mealtime is over. :)

However, my sweet mother is a sucker for pleading eyes...I know from experience (I do feel guilty about that).  Love you mom!

Day 19: Blinker

Oh, Jasper!

I tried to take a picture of my parents today since it's Father's day, but none of them turned out.  (I didn't notice that I was blocking the flash with my own hand.)  So, instead you get this close-up of my sister's cat, Jasper.

Here's a little story about Jasper:

When Christine moved here from Miami, Jasper was the definition of a 'fraidy cat.  He hid underneath Christine's bed the first week or so that he was here, and when he did venture out, he was on high alert and would bolt the second he heard any noise.  He never got near the front door when we opened it.  Outside was a jungle of strange noises and smells that made him pee a little every time he got near it.  We tried to slowly get him used to our house and - at least - our front porch, and by degree's, he began to acclimate.

Then one morning, just a month or so after Christine moved here, Dad got up early to get the paper and accidentally left the front door ajar.  Jasper, apparently feeling a bit brave, ventured outside to check out the early morning air.  Shortly after he snuck out, Dad noticed the open front door and shut it on his way back upstairs.  A few hours later, as I was headed out to work, I noticed a noise outside that sounded like a baby crying.  I opened the door to see if one of the neighbors was outside, but I couldn't see a thing.  The sound was so loud!  So I stood on the front porch to try to get a better look, and noticed something moving underneath my car in front of the house.  As I approached the car, the crying got louder and deeper and I realized it was Jasper!  I was shocked!  What was he doing trapped under my car at 7 in the morning!

He wouldn't come out from under the car until I was crouched down next to him with my proffered hand underneath the bumper.  Once he inched out enough for me to pick him up, he was immediately in my lap, clinging to my shoulder with all claws out.  His wailing intensified until I brought him back inside, but the moment I let him down on the living room carpet, he bolted for Christine's room to hide under her bed for the rest of the day.

We couldn't get him near the living room for a week.

Day 6: At Home with Jasper

Jasper, Christine's 'fraidy-cat.

He is the cutest little kitty who loves everyone and is frightened to death of them at the same time!  Dad was using skill saw today to cut a hole in one of our doors (long story), and the noise was freaking Jasper out so bad that he couldn't stand up straight.  You think he's stalking something, but really he's waiting for the next big noise to make him jump out of his skin.

Imagine the cartoon cats that leave a body outline of hair as they jump up to the ceiling...he's done that before. Only he didn't quite make it as far as the ceiling.  No joke.

He's jumpy, sure, but he's our favorite little kitty!