Friday, January 4, 2008

Power? No Power?

We've pretty much been without power since 2am this morning. Oh sure we've had periods of power, just enough to keep the stuff in my fridge from being tomorrows compost.

So what's a girl to do when the power once again goes out at 3pm? Well first off, mama didn't raise no fool, so I pulled out and washed the dust off my kerosene lanterns. Luckily for us I can say they are dusty, we are lucky in the fact that we are rarely without power. We set them up in cat safe areas and went off in search of matches and marshmallows. Oh and dinner. Because while I did have hubby dearest find the Coleman stove he didn't think I actually meant to use it I'm sure. Besides, you never know when I might get cold enough to use it as an impromptu camp fire.

So G and I got home from dinner and errands. We set up the S'more maker my mom set home to us that someone gave her. Think on this for a moment. My mother lives where there is never any power, she heats her house with wood stoves and fireplaces, and someone gifted her a S'more maker. It's a neat little deal. Little cast iron pot with a little grill that you put a sterno under, little pokers with wooden handles for toasting your marshmallows, a whole little set of ceramic dishes to put your gram crackers, chocolate bars, and marshmallows in, and a lazy susan for everything to live on. So after we got home and lit the lanterns, G and I broke out the S'more maker and all the goodies. We sat for an hour or so toasting marshmallows on the living room floor. Neither of us are hot on the "whole" s'more idea. Neither of us like chocolate, but we had a ball marshmallow fighting and lighting each others marshmallows on fire. Nothing says fun like flaming balls of sugar. Especially with a 12 week old ball of fire running through the middle of it all. I'm pretty sure she'll need another bath tomorrow. I think she caught the bottom of a marshmallow or two on her back. I know that damn retractable leash almost caused a heart attack or two.

So she did one really STUPID funny thing today and one really funny one with her and the cat which I tried to catch on the camera but it was too dark in here.
So the stupid thing.... or maybe we could call this educational? She learned where Mickey pees from today. While he was peeing. Can you say instant bathtime?
Funny funny funny. Her retractable leash is one of the corded ones, so there is about 18" of flat band leash, then a plastic connector, then 16' of cord. Since she's not fully potty trained, and it was darker than hell in here tonight, she had to stay on her leash. Which meant that made for a great cat toy, for those cats that were venturing out. My animals in general hole up during any form of storm, I rarely see anyone unless they are hiding under my covers at night. My cat, Legs, was out and about. He thought the leach was great fun, which meant he was chasing the puppy all over the living room, which she thought was great fun, so she was chasing the cat. Can you see how this was fun with a lit sterno and flaming balls of sugar involved?
At one point, the cat has caught the leash and is sitting there with it in his mouth, the great prize that it is. The puppy turns around, grabs the leash about 12" from the cat, growls and starts yanking for all she's worth. The cat doesn't even flinch, he didn't let go either, nor did he knock her across the living room.

And I couldn't get my camera in time. Dammit dammit dammit.

Thursday, January 3, 2008


"Please remove the brown thing from my head. I already promised not to eat her." This picture was taken after she fell off his head. She had been laying with her head and paws laid right between his ears, flat down on top of his head. Poor baby Mickey.

"How did I get in here and how do I get out?"

"Maybe I like the box a little. But don't tell anyone. You're taking a picture aren't you?"

"I growl at you. I growl at.... are you laughing at me?"

"Who you laughin' at, camera face."

That is a dearfoam slipper box. To give you an idea of her size. She likes to get in there and spin around on her side and then roll over on her back and stick all four feet out the hole and growl.

At one point while my mom was staying here this last weekend she says from the kitchen;
"Amy get in here and tell me what the hell your puppy is doing?"
I jet into the kitchen because she's a puppy and who the hell knows what she'll be eating doing NOW.
I find her in the water dish, which was empty, curled around in it, with her back against the side, pushing herself around and around in circles, growling. Then she'd stand up, dig, growl, and put her head down and push her head around the bowl for a few turns before flipping her whole body into the bowl and pushing around for a while.
"I have no idea. I really have NO idea."
My mother says "Think she's thirsty?"