Amber & Milky Tea

Don't forget to relax today.

I am thankful for creamline milk, Earl Grey tea, and relaxation.

Amber & I Luff Her

Tiggy is all about togetherness this morning.  It took her a while to get settled in to a comfy place; there was lots of walking back and forth and milk treading.  I had to sort of actively manage her turning around to keep her parts out of my face.

But then, she found a comfy bed and has been sleeping there ever since.

It's surprisingly comfortable and leaves my hands free for typing.

Amber & Some Sundays

Some Sundays, you just can't blog.  You are too pooped in the hamstrings from taking a class with this amazing woman.



And so all you can do is something like this.

Or this.

Amazing role models: I gotz em.

Amber & Not Laboring

Except for that part on the path in the woods.

Amber & The Same

See? Woody isn't sleeping more than Pickles. So, that's not a sign of sickness.

Amber & Sooo Much To Do Today

Woody seems okay, mostly. His breathing may be a little more effortful than usual, or maybe not. He is sleeping alot, but not more than Pickles. And, he is warm on my lap while we watch competitive cooking shows. That's good, right?

Amber & How To Spend My Day Off?

Sniffing Ginger's neck. It smells like softness.

Amber & All In A Day's Vacation

Hammock time.

Amber & Arrived

We're here. And it's wonderful.

Amber & The Storm Before The Calm

1.  Go to Schaubhut to pick up more meds for Pickles.  Check.

2.  Go to Whiskers to get calm drops for travel and gut-pills for barfy Woody.  Check.

3.  Get, but do not eat, a chocolate croissant for Nick's Birthday Breakfast treat.  Check on the getting...

...and we'll see about the eating.

4.  Work.  (In Progress)

5.  Pack up work laptop, stuff at office, including books to read and bike helmet.

6.  Whole Foods for last minute purchases: sunblock, citronella spray, face scrub and shampoo.

7.  Stop by Spoiled Brats to place order to pick up tomorrow on way out of town.  (Rather than lug two cases of food, 35 lbs of litter, and other supplies up the stairs and then back down tomorrow.)

8.  Buy $5 gypsy skirt on the street.

9.  Laundry.

10.  Pack and clean apartment.

11.  Go to River House.

 Breathe.

Amber & Two Day Countdown

Sigh.

And, more sigh.

Amber & Asking For It

How could I not go rub his belly?

Amber & Sunday Well Spent

In addition to celebrating Woodra Pooja yesterday, and performing all of the honored rituals including seriously seven rounds of sink hands, I also beat my high Sudoku score.

Of course, it's the Easy version, so rather than being on fire I was really just luke warm.  But it's still pretty fast compared to my average time.  Although that seems to suggest it was just a fluke.

You know what wasn't a fluke?  These cutie little decorator pillows I made yesterday!

I finally used some of this fabric I love to make two 12" pillows.  Why are the so small?  Have you seen how small my couch is?  A bonus is that the gray in them matches well with Ginger's fur.

And the ecru color matches nicely with the sheet I have to drape over my couch to protect it from excessive fur build up.  See? Even though I have to protect all of my things from cats, I can still have pretty things.  Very small pretty things.  And cats.

P.S. A shirt is in the works out of the same fabric.  I can't wait to wear it and blend in like camouflage on the couch!

Amber & Woodra Pooja

Today is the second of the annual kitty poojas!  Happy Woodra Pooja every one!

(photo by James)

Like, Gigi, Woody has a dual nature that we celebrate on this special day.  Woodrow Wilson Gutherie Feline is both an incredible snuggle monster, always close by and looking for under-leg tummy rubs...

But also the world's crankiest old man cat, barely tolerant of the affections of his little brothers.

Thus, Woody teaches us that we are all compassionate, but that being nice doesn't mean letting others walk all over us (or chew our necks).  Woody reminds us that, through it all--even if we start out a small snake-eyed frizzy beast...

...even through Elizabethan Collars and knee surgery...

(photo by James)

...our foremost duty is to honor and respect the miracle of life and to enjoy every day that we can spend with our fellow living creatures-- especially if they provide us with environments.

 To celebrate Woodra Pooja, there be lots of ritualistic face rubbing, with the customary shedding of great amounts of facial fur.  Thus, we coat ourselves with the essence of Woody: softness.

(photo by James)

Once the rubbing has completed, there will be some eating of wet food mixed with water, plenty of sink hands (with Woody perched on the edge of the tub--not on the sink) and then we will repeat the cheek rubbing and coating of our pants in fur, pretty much every time we sit down.

There will be the traditional offering of a cup of water out of which I have taken sips for paw bathing and drinking.

(photo by James)

And there will be appreciation of how beautiful and special all living things are.  And we may even get weepy thinking about how lucky we are to have such magical and unique interspecies friends who mean so much to us every day and give us unconditional* love.

And then there will probably be more lap time.

Happy Woodra Pooja!

*Unconditional as long as there is wet food, clean litter and belly rubbing.

Amber & Belly Licks

Aside from the same birth mother (but not necessarily father), being found in the rhubarb patch, and not being appreciative of their baby brothers' energies, another thing Woody and Tiggy have in common is that they overgroom their bellies.

It has been explained to me that this is about stress.  It's sort of a nervous habit that becomes habitual.  And, it feels nice to the cat to have its belly rubbed, even if that is by a really really rough tongue*.

Back in the old days, before we had baby brothers and burned lavender incense, they used to lick to the point of rawness, but now they just keep their bellies relatively hairless and it seems pretty benign.  They each even have a small amount of peach fuzz covering the whole area now. I don't worry about it because they seem less stressed out overall.

*

Amber & Entertainments

Tomorrow night, the Winterpills, whose beautiful harmonies were but one of the delights at Amy and David Bee's wedding and whose Flora and Philip make for delightful table friends, are playing at this place tonight.

I really, really suggest you go enjoy them.  They're wonderful.



And this is one of my favorites.

Amber & Waiting to Exhale

What do you think it means that I woke up humming this song to myself this morning?

Do you think it has something to do with the fact that I did soft belly meditation before bed last night?

Amber & OMG LOLCAT

The one paw resting on the belly, just above the pink hairless part, really seals the deal of cuteness.

Amber & "Normal"

I made my biennial man-sock quest to Uniqlo in SoHo over the weekend.

While, there, though, I discovered that they have a basement with all kind of lounge clothing for the ladies.  (This discovery is probably, for many readers, akin to my discovery of sodoku.)  I got a pair of stripey leggings and a couple of stripey tank tops for, well, lounging.  I discovered that I take a size large in Uniqlo, but discovered when I got home that this was not because I am settling like a lovely (but spooky) Victorian mansion but rather because the Japanese are not "normal size."

This tag was on the tank top I am currently wearing.  It says...

Japan Size

This product has been made to

Japanese specifications and is

therefore a little smaller than

normal. We recommend that

you try it on for size.

It strikes me as odd, that use of "normal."

Amber & Personal Computing

Katie, Nick and Rob are having personal laptop and/or smart phone
time. Earlier, Jeremy made this awesome tower while the spotted
palamino looked on. I have been playing Scramble. Days off.