Sunday, June 24, 2012
Saturday, June 23, 2012
A Visitor
We had a visitor last night.
...A big visitor...
...As evidenced by the cow patties left in the driveway.
Female Handler discovered signs of the visitor first hand....
....by stepping on a patty in the early morning darkness as both Handlers headed out for a run.
Fortunately the garden gate was latched closed otherwise it would have been a real shocker for them both to see a cow slumbering on the front porch.
...A big visitor...
...As evidenced by the cow patties left in the driveway.
Female Handler discovered signs of the visitor first hand....
....by stepping on a patty in the early morning darkness as both Handlers headed out for a run.
Fortunately the garden gate was latched closed otherwise it would have been a real shocker for them both to see a cow slumbering on the front porch.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Down Memory Lane
Female Handler (FH) had a visit by her childhood best friend and her husband, and I must say in advance, they are both cat lovers. Consequently I was doted on. What's not to love about that.
Anyway, their history goes back 45 years. LOTS of history. And when they got back together... they picked up where they last left off. Seamlessly.
They had to find an old cemetery as...that is just what they do. They had spent many a Saturday afternoon at a Chinese cemetery in NE Thailand during the 60s and early 70s, and so it was necessary to explore one in Colonia Uruguay as well.
And if their visit alone wasn't enough to excite the handlers, as the previous posting indicated, they brought a gift consisting of a reel lawn mower with them. I suspect FH started getting misty eyed when she saw that...Let us take a moment to appreciate the incredible hassle of excess luggage, odd stares by Argentinean customs, a crowd that surrounded Shawn as she slept on the bench with hand draped over the box waiting to board their ferry at the Buquebus Terminal in Buenos Aires, and the Uruguayan customs inquisition on what was in the box. True to form, they asked for a receipt as no one in their right mind would bring a lawn mower into the country as baggage and it was probably a flat screen TV or something. Fortunately Bill had the receipt, and they were waved on. And Uruguayan customs had another story for their archives ...
Not only did Bill assemble the lawn mower, he decided to break a little sweat while Shawn was clipping around the trees. At this particular "spa"...you have to earn your hot water bottle at night...
Evening entertainment was reading old letters. All quite tame, but all very embarrassing. When the visit was over, FH felt like she had been visited by her best friend, and her best friend's mother. This gangly "space cadet" girl had become an intelligent, passionate, and hilariously funny Mrs. Forney.
It was an very special visit.
And did I tell you they loved cats? What's not to love...
Anyway, their history goes back 45 years. LOTS of history. And when they got back together... they picked up where they last left off. Seamlessly.
They had to find an old cemetery as...that is just what they do. They had spent many a Saturday afternoon at a Chinese cemetery in NE Thailand during the 60s and early 70s, and so it was necessary to explore one in Colonia Uruguay as well.
And if their visit alone wasn't enough to excite the handlers, as the previous posting indicated, they brought a gift consisting of a reel lawn mower with them. I suspect FH started getting misty eyed when she saw that...Let us take a moment to appreciate the incredible hassle of excess luggage, odd stares by Argentinean customs, a crowd that surrounded Shawn as she slept on the bench with hand draped over the box waiting to board their ferry at the Buquebus Terminal in Buenos Aires, and the Uruguayan customs inquisition on what was in the box. True to form, they asked for a receipt as no one in their right mind would bring a lawn mower into the country as baggage and it was probably a flat screen TV or something. Fortunately Bill had the receipt, and they were waved on. And Uruguayan customs had another story for their archives ...
Not only did Bill assemble the lawn mower, he decided to break a little sweat while Shawn was clipping around the trees. At this particular "spa"...you have to earn your hot water bottle at night...
 |
| Taking in a bird's eye view of Colonia from the lighthouse. |
 |
| Bill, checking to see if the door was unlocked so he could just sit in this beauty for a bit |
 |
| Fortunately not every day and night was cold, but on this evening, it did take them awhile to remove their coats! |
It was an very special visit.
And did I tell you they loved cats? What's not to love...
Monday, June 11, 2012
Sunday, June 10, 2012
What time is it?
The Handlers bought a couple windup clocks last time they had to make a "Visa Run" over to Buenos Aires at the Mercado de San Telmo. The reason for windup over battery-operated is that batteries are freaking expensive (in a moment of desperation and weakness they bought a clock battery last January in Montevideo for US$13). They tested the windup clocks as best as they could in a very noisy market:
"Can you hear it tick?" "I think so." Check
"Does the alarm work?" "Sounds like something is chiming." Check
This green one is especially wonderful. Aged gracefully, and still ticking. Maybe.
So....ummm, yeah, so there you have it. This is the best way to orient this particular clock. And it will keep on ticking with only ONE daily windup.
"Can you hear it tick?" "I think so." Check
"Does the alarm work?" "Sounds like something is chiming." Check
This green one is especially wonderful. Aged gracefully, and still ticking. Maybe.
Love the second hand!
Easy slapping of the alarm.
The nature of windup clocks is that you need to WIND THEM UP! Male Handler (MH) seemed to constantly be winding up the clock. And after a couple of minutes....it would die even when he was staring at it. Female Handler (FH) suggested he stop micro-managing the clock.
But if you know MH the way I know MH, he'll figure out a way to make it work. And he did! It was only a matter of figuring how best to lay the clock down. We're not talking slamming it down on the counter, or paying homage to it daily with flowers and fruit....but rather how best to orient the clock.
So....ummm, yeah, so there you have it. This is the best way to orient this particular clock. And it will keep on ticking with only ONE daily windup.
His and Her's
This winter is getting a bit more bearable. The reason why is because Keika and I have our own hot water bottles. BELIEVE ME....we like our hot water bottles. Mine is the retro green one and Keika has the red one.
The Handlers went out yesterday to buy two more because family is coming in today and one of them is a whimp when it comes to the cold (we actually figure she'll spend most of the time holding the hot water bottle against her). Female Handler covered theirs in a fleece wool combination. I whined a bit that ours were not covered as well. I mean, seriously, what cat wants to be laying against rubber?!? Give me a break! So now the entire stash of hot water bottles are covered!
Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!
The Handlers went out yesterday to buy two more because family is coming in today and one of them is a whimp when it comes to the cold (we actually figure she'll spend most of the time holding the hot water bottle against her). Female Handler covered theirs in a fleece wool combination. I whined a bit that ours were not covered as well. I mean, seriously, what cat wants to be laying against rubber?!? Give me a break! So now the entire stash of hot water bottles are covered!
Sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Sleepmates
So...I pulled this out of Female Handler's sent emails this morning:
The flannel sheets are on your bed! The good news is when I asked Mum to bring the flannel sheets last summer (our summer), she brought the ones for the full size bed, and not the ones for the queen. So you guys get to use the flannel sheets and if necessary, we’ll crawl in bed with you! The temps are dipping into the 30s next week, but will rise a bit for the week that you’re here (fyi, there is no such thing as “central heat” in any house or building in Uruguay, and our ambient heat is exclusively wood from either the wood stove or the fireplace) . There are 7 layers on your bed (including the sheet) so I think you’ll be good. Plus I put a small fleece throw on there just in case Shawn is still cold. We bought some wool yesterday and I’m embellishing them slightly and making them into throws for the living room for sitting around the fire. If necessary, we’ll bring the kids in, and Shawn can sit between them. Their coats are heavenly right now. Timi’s is about 2” thick. Bill, you might draw the line with Shawn’s desire to bring Timi to bed with her…I’m just saying….someone’s going to get hurt if she insists.
Hold on to your goats Ms Martha. If any four legged creature is brought to bed, it's most definitely going to be me. Flannel...how long have I been howling for those sheets and now you put them on the bedroom that's closed up most of the time.
Let us do a simple comparison on heavenly coats.
Timida's coat:
My coat:
I could rest my case on that alone, but let me just add that I do not have 6" horns to contend with. I will lull the family to sleep with my purr.
The flannel sheets are on your bed! The good news is when I asked Mum to bring the flannel sheets last summer (our summer), she brought the ones for the full size bed, and not the ones for the queen. So you guys get to use the flannel sheets and if necessary, we’ll crawl in bed with you! The temps are dipping into the 30s next week, but will rise a bit for the week that you’re here (fyi, there is no such thing as “central heat” in any house or building in Uruguay, and our ambient heat is exclusively wood from either the wood stove or the fireplace) . There are 7 layers on your bed (including the sheet) so I think you’ll be good. Plus I put a small fleece throw on there just in case Shawn is still cold. We bought some wool yesterday and I’m embellishing them slightly and making them into throws for the living room for sitting around the fire. If necessary, we’ll bring the kids in, and Shawn can sit between them. Their coats are heavenly right now. Timi’s is about 2” thick. Bill, you might draw the line with Shawn’s desire to bring Timi to bed with her…I’m just saying….someone’s going to get hurt if she insists.
Hold on to your goats Ms Martha. If any four legged creature is brought to bed, it's most definitely going to be me. Flannel...how long have I been howling for those sheets and now you put them on the bedroom that's closed up most of the time.
Let us do a simple comparison on heavenly coats.
Timida's coat:
My coat:
I could rest my case on that alone, but let me just add that I do not have 6" horns to contend with. I will lull the family to sleep with my purr.
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