One of the things I like about my tea bags are the cute little quips on the tea tags. Over the years I've saved some of the tags that made me smile as I waited for my leaves to brew, like "Out of the mouths of babes come words we wish we'd never said" and "We're about as happy as we make up our minds to be."
Lately, though, I've noticed that my tea bags have gotten a bit snippy: "If ignorance is bliss why aren't there more happy people?" "We have the highest standard of living in the world, too bad we can't afford it" and "Most people don't recognize opportunity because it comes disguised as hard work."
Ironically, I noticed that this last batch of tea has tasted a bit bitter and now I know why. Somebod-tea needs an attitude adjustment. I get enough attitude from my family. I don't need it from my morning beverage, too.
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Because one of my jobs as a freelance writer is to review books, I get a lot of press releases from writers looking for coverage for their new tome. Today, I got a chain email from one of those writers, warning about the dangers of inflammatory breast cancer.
Considering that 1) I've already gotten that email from about 25 other women and 2) I don't know this author from Adam, I asked her to remove me from her mailing list. She wrote back and said she hoped that I'd at least viewed the video because it was important.
I get enough email crap from people I know without writers looking for media coverage adding me to their crap email lists.
So a word of advice, those of you looking to promote your books, music and what not: don't treat your media list like your buddy list. It's the best way to alienate yourself from people that you want to like you. And chain email is the best way to make sure you end up on the "ignore" list.
Considering that 1) I've already gotten that email from about 25 other women and 2) I don't know this author from Adam, I asked her to remove me from her mailing list. She wrote back and said she hoped that I'd at least viewed the video because it was important.
I get enough email crap from people I know without writers looking for media coverage adding me to their crap email lists.
So a word of advice, those of you looking to promote your books, music and what not: don't treat your media list like your buddy list. It's the best way to alienate yourself from people that you want to like you. And chain email is the best way to make sure you end up on the "ignore" list.
Labels:
writing life
The good news is that I can drive Scout in the car by myself to the vet. I know that because I did it on Thursday.
The bad news is that he chewed the top of his cast all up and was so wired he was ready to go try some more jumping, either onto the couch, out in the yard, wherever his little body would let him.
The good news is that they can give him lovely tranqualizers to calm him down, that pretty much make him stoned.
The bad news is that he's not asleep, so if he can't see me he sits up and whines. And then kind of falls over.
The good news is that he isn't trying to stand up or chew his cast.
The bad news is that he has a big lampshade around his neck to keep him from chewing his cast.
Even worse, he has to stay on crate rest, on the tranqualizers, and with the lampshade for 5 more weeks.
Labels:
Pets
Saturday, August 19, 2006
I could very well be the worst puppy mommie on the planet.
Yesterday, after a lethargic afternoon spent in the house with the curtains drawn so we could nap in comfort, I took Scout out to play in the yard. He splashed in the pool, ran laps in the back yard and had himself a grand time. Then I got the brilliant idea to get him to practice jumping.
Border collies are known for being great frisbee catchers. They can get waaay off the ground and catch a frisbee in the air. They also do great in those obstacle courses. Scout is a super fast runner and he can jump, but he hasn't quite gotten the connection between jumping and catching something mid air.
We have a dog run that spans the back yard (the yard is the size of a postage stamp) and it hangs low enough so that the rope is about at my chin. If I hang the stuffed headless kitty by one arm it hangs down about 6" lower. From a sitting position, Scout tried to grab the stuffed kitty and missed. Then he stood up and tried a jump from a stationary position but still couldn't get it.
So we tried the running jump, and after one attempt he was scooping that kitty off the line with ease. After maybe 10 tries like that, and me saying, "Daddy's going to be so proud that you're learning to jump!", I decided to hang the kitty so it was a couple of inches higher.
Scout came running with determination, jumped, missed, and fell on his right hind leg. I heard a huge crack and then yelping that would break your heart. I knew immediately that he'd broken his leg.
I went into super panic mode, which is kind of unusual for me. I'm usually pretty good in the heat of a crisis and then suffer meltdown later.
Thankfully my neighbor heard the yelp and came over. I was hysterical on the phone to the emergency vet and then trying to run out to get the car. But Flow just calmly walked in, picked up the dog, and said, "Follow me. You're not driving anywhere." She got her partner Brigitte and they drove me to the vet. Thank God for them.
Long story short Scout has a broken tibia. The vet said if he had to have a fracture it's the best kind in the best place and his prognosis for a complete recovery is excellent. He's on total crate rest for at least 10 days and then they'll re-xray and go from there. His whole back leg is in a huge pink (why pink?!) soft cast (called a Robert Jones cast; they didn't have a splint to fit him). The word "ouch" is marked on the spot where the break is. He'll be in that cast for five or six weeks.
He's crabby today and barely moving. We have him on his dog bed wedged between the couch and the book shelf, because he hates the crate. I put him in there and he peed, which is pretty much the routine for the crate. We have to carry him out to go potty, he can't walk to find a good spot (maybe I'll just put him in the crate and use it as his own personal bathroom), and they suggest that if he'll eat lying down he should.
I feel horrible. He's missing the last 5 weeks of summer (splashing in his pool, running at camp, swimming in the pond, chasing the neighborhood cats) all because I'm stupid.
Yesterday, after a lethargic afternoon spent in the house with the curtains drawn so we could nap in comfort, I took Scout out to play in the yard. He splashed in the pool, ran laps in the back yard and had himself a grand time. Then I got the brilliant idea to get him to practice jumping.
Border collies are known for being great frisbee catchers. They can get waaay off the ground and catch a frisbee in the air. They also do great in those obstacle courses. Scout is a super fast runner and he can jump, but he hasn't quite gotten the connection between jumping and catching something mid air.
We have a dog run that spans the back yard (the yard is the size of a postage stamp) and it hangs low enough so that the rope is about at my chin. If I hang the stuffed headless kitty by one arm it hangs down about 6" lower. From a sitting position, Scout tried to grab the stuffed kitty and missed. Then he stood up and tried a jump from a stationary position but still couldn't get it.
So we tried the running jump, and after one attempt he was scooping that kitty off the line with ease. After maybe 10 tries like that, and me saying, "Daddy's going to be so proud that you're learning to jump!", I decided to hang the kitty so it was a couple of inches higher.
Scout came running with determination, jumped, missed, and fell on his right hind leg. I heard a huge crack and then yelping that would break your heart. I knew immediately that he'd broken his leg.
I went into super panic mode, which is kind of unusual for me. I'm usually pretty good in the heat of a crisis and then suffer meltdown later.
Thankfully my neighbor heard the yelp and came over. I was hysterical on the phone to the emergency vet and then trying to run out to get the car. But Flow just calmly walked in, picked up the dog, and said, "Follow me. You're not driving anywhere." She got her partner Brigitte and they drove me to the vet. Thank God for them.
Long story short Scout has a broken tibia. The vet said if he had to have a fracture it's the best kind in the best place and his prognosis for a complete recovery is excellent. He's on total crate rest for at least 10 days and then they'll re-xray and go from there. His whole back leg is in a huge pink (why pink?!) soft cast (called a Robert Jones cast; they didn't have a splint to fit him). The word "ouch" is marked on the spot where the break is. He'll be in that cast for five or six weeks.
He's crabby today and barely moving. We have him on his dog bed wedged between the couch and the book shelf, because he hates the crate. I put him in there and he peed, which is pretty much the routine for the crate. We have to carry him out to go potty, he can't walk to find a good spot (maybe I'll just put him in the crate and use it as his own personal bathroom), and they suggest that if he'll eat lying down he should.
I feel horrible. He's missing the last 5 weeks of summer (splashing in his pool, running at camp, swimming in the pond, chasing the neighborhood cats) all because I'm stupid.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Things The Make You Go Hmmm ...
Here are the ingredients on my bottle of Caro Light Corn Syrup:
Light Corn Syrup
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Salt
Vanilla
Hmmm ... so did we need to list the first two ingredients?
Light Corn Syrup
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Salt
Vanilla
Hmmm ... so did we need to list the first two ingredients?
It's 10:37 PM on Wednesday and I'm sitting here waiting to pick Cassie up from the airport.
She was supposed to have taken a 2 PM direct flight and been here in Rochester by 5 PM. But at 12:30 PM she called me from Florida and said she still had to take her boxes and car to friends for storage for the month, and the apartment complex manager still had to do a walk through of the apartment. Given the fact that it's probably at least a half-hour drive to the airport with no traffic, she was definitely going to miss her flight.
She called the airline and was told she could fly stand by on a 6 PM flight. Sounds good, eh? Well, she was running too late for that flight as well, and ended up on the 7 PM last flight tonight out of Tampa. She was stand by again for the connecting flight from Atlanta and told she may not have a seat, so we were relieved when she called to say she'd made the flight and would land at 11 PM in Rochester.
Only problem is that the Atlanta flight has been delayed because of mechanical difficulties, so after 45 mins on the runway they've heading back to the gate. The AirTran website estimates a 10:55 PM departure with a 1 AM arrival in Rochester.
Of course, Rochester is expected to get severe thunderstorms right around 1 AM so we'll see if they're able to land or have to divert to Buffalo or what.
This is one of those moments when the only thing you can do is pray - for good weather, for a safe flight, for patience.
Meanwhile, I'll sit here and watch the dog and the cat feel each other out. It's been 10 days since Scout came to live with us and the cat has been hiding the whole time. At some point they'll have to just have it out and find a way to live with each other. So far, no blood has been shed, but it's still early.
She was supposed to have taken a 2 PM direct flight and been here in Rochester by 5 PM. But at 12:30 PM she called me from Florida and said she still had to take her boxes and car to friends for storage for the month, and the apartment complex manager still had to do a walk through of the apartment. Given the fact that it's probably at least a half-hour drive to the airport with no traffic, she was definitely going to miss her flight.
She called the airline and was told she could fly stand by on a 6 PM flight. Sounds good, eh? Well, she was running too late for that flight as well, and ended up on the 7 PM last flight tonight out of Tampa. She was stand by again for the connecting flight from Atlanta and told she may not have a seat, so we were relieved when she called to say she'd made the flight and would land at 11 PM in Rochester.
Only problem is that the Atlanta flight has been delayed because of mechanical difficulties, so after 45 mins on the runway they've heading back to the gate. The AirTran website estimates a 10:55 PM departure with a 1 AM arrival in Rochester.
Of course, Rochester is expected to get severe thunderstorms right around 1 AM so we'll see if they're able to land or have to divert to Buffalo or what.
This is one of those moments when the only thing you can do is pray - for good weather, for a safe flight, for patience.
Meanwhile, I'll sit here and watch the dog and the cat feel each other out. It's been 10 days since Scout came to live with us and the cat has been hiding the whole time. At some point they'll have to just have it out and find a way to live with each other. So far, no blood has been shed, but it's still early.
Last night was an interesting night with Scout. For all intents and purposes, he never went to sleep.
Oh sure, he dozed off for about an hour when we first hit the hay, which is when I got the bulk of my sleep, but otherwise he barked, paced, whined, and generally was a big pain in the behind.
He's been sleeping in our bed for the past week so I hated to put him in the crate again, but I tried it, and he just whined and banged against the bars.
I took him out a few times, and he went potty, but mostly he sniffed and chased moths and ate grass.
And barked. And barked and barked and barked.
I finally had David take him out because I figured that if the dog was barking there might be some reason and I didn't want to encounter a prowler, stray cat or neighborhood kid while I was in my nightie.
Eventually I just took Scout down stairs, crawled on the couch and let him play while I tried to rest. But the dog was really wound by now and started doing laps around the living and dining rooms, up on the couch, up on the recliner, bounding over my weary body. At about 7 AM he dozed off.
We tried to keep him active today so he'd be tired tonight, but it's 11 PM and he's preparing for a fight with the cat. So we'll see.
Oh sure, he dozed off for about an hour when we first hit the hay, which is when I got the bulk of my sleep, but otherwise he barked, paced, whined, and generally was a big pain in the behind.
He's been sleeping in our bed for the past week so I hated to put him in the crate again, but I tried it, and he just whined and banged against the bars.
I took him out a few times, and he went potty, but mostly he sniffed and chased moths and ate grass.
And barked. And barked and barked and barked.
I finally had David take him out because I figured that if the dog was barking there might be some reason and I didn't want to encounter a prowler, stray cat or neighborhood kid while I was in my nightie.
Eventually I just took Scout down stairs, crawled on the couch and let him play while I tried to rest. But the dog was really wound by now and started doing laps around the living and dining rooms, up on the couch, up on the recliner, bounding over my weary body. At about 7 AM he dozed off.
We tried to keep him active today so he'd be tired tonight, but it's 11 PM and he's preparing for a fight with the cat. So we'll see.
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