Alien Spouse

Blossoming Paper.

It's snowing quite hard, and my office is practically empty (Doc says we should leave at lunchtime) - So, naturally, I'm sitting at my desk learning how to make origami cherry blossom.

Focus.

Another picture from Saturday morning which, again, illustrates the magic of human eyeballs.

This is a photo taken through the Mini's glass sunroof of the ice crystals that had formed rather charmingly on it. My eyes were easily able to focus on them, and see them as white - but I could not get the camera's auto-focus to understand what I wanted it to look at; so it sensibly decided it must be the tree branches overhead. The ice crystals that are the most in focus also look dark grey against the blue sky, instead of the frosty mix of white and clear that they looked like to me.

That's ok Little Camera, it's still a pretty picture!

Autumn Morning.

There are some mornings when both of your precious darling cats have thrown up in various places, and, whilst you clean that up, the kitchen fills with smoke because your breakfast bagel has burnt in the toaster.

It is particularly important on those mornings to take a deep breath, and also to appreciate a moment of unexpected beauty when you walk around a corner to see misty sunlight shining on autumn leaves.

Winter is coming.

Much as the end of Winter is signalled by a specific Groundhog leaving it's burrow, so too is the on-set of colder weather heralded by Edith Cavell-Cat's re-discovery of the cat tower.

At least, it is in our house.

 

Weekend Status Report.

The Good: I am reading Donna Tartt's "The Secret History" and loving it. It's sort of a murder mystery with academic overtones, but whodunnit is never any sort of a puzzle. It's gripping.

The Bad: The weather this weekend has been really humid and sticky, my least favourite kind of weather personally. I cannot wait for Autumn proper to kick in with some nice crisp mornings.

The Ugly: The cream that the dermatologist prescribed causes a rash to flare up on my chest, and so it suddenly feels as though every single t-shirt I own has a scoop neck to it which hits me in just exactly the wrong spot. Yesterday I discovered that wearing a scoop neck backwards creates a boatneck at the front which conceals and protects the itchy bumpiness. This will look intentional with most of my tops; the exception being henleys, so if you should happen to notice that I have a row of buttons down my back, can we just pretend it's a new fashion trend from Europe or something?

The Fabulous: Monday is Labour Day, it's like Bank Holiday Weekend, and I have finally treated myself to a copy of "Portal 2" so I intend to be spending several hours of my day off in my pajamas playing that, with occasional breaks for coffee and toast.

Half Awake.

This is, I think, the first summer when I haven't taken a week or two off, and that, combined with it being blatantly too warm, is really hitting me hard - in other words I am sodding knackered!

Yesterday I felt very tired and headachey, and I tried to just push through it, but even after a shower and breakfast I felt no better; so I called in sick (well, e-mailed) put in ear plugs, and promptly went back to sleep for 5 hours. Today I went in, and somehow dragged my carcass through the day but I am very tired now.

I am still dressed for some sort of exercise though, some pilates and at least 20 minutes of Zumba will get my blood circulating and maybe then I'll feel less sluggish. It's worth a go, right? Besides, I am determined to lose ten more pounds, and sitting around just isn't going to accomplish that goal.

More's the pity.

Zonked Out.

...hmph...what?.. Asleep? On the sofa? Since I got home five hours ago?

Well, yes.

It was a combination of the new sofa's memory foam comfortableness, the pint of Guinness I had after work and it being a very warm day.

Too Damn Hot (Well, It's the Humidity Really).

It is far too warm for me to do anything at the moment apart from watch television and compose an internal complaint monologue about how humid it is. This does not make for interesting blogging (unless you want re-caps of SyFy shows), but it does keep me from eating my own body weight in ice cream.

Third Day of the Weekend.

Today I did a zumba routine, cleaned both bathrooms, battled gladiators (and won! Roar!), washed three loads of laundry, played petanque with Doc C, read half a book, "walked" the cats, and helped to recapture the cats after they both escaped in separate prison breaks.

Not bad considering it was the first day we've felt the need to turn the ceiling fan on, because it was the first warm summer day and I do not do well in heat.

All in all, an memorable Memorial Day -slash- Bank Holiday Monday.

Cold Snap Saps.

It's been cold and rainy all day, and that sudden change in weather has made me really tired. I mean it's only just gone 9 and I've already brushed my teeth and got into bed.

Admittedly I have commandeered Doc's iPad (he was given it by his department, but only after I convinced him to actually accept the thing) to watch "RuPaul's Drag U".

Still tomorrow will be warmer, apparently, and then maybe I'll find some energy.

I Dream of Germs.

Last night I dreamt that I felt really ill, and was trying to decide if I felt well enough to go into the office. It was very confusing to wake up feeling totally healthy.

Anticipating warm weather I got dressed in capris, a t-shirt and a thin cardigan; I was just putting on my shoes when Doc C told me it was actually going quite chilly. So then I had to get changed in about thirty seconds flat before we left the house.

That was still the best way round for doing things, I'd much rather be healthy and somewhat warmly dressed in jeans, a long sleeved t-shirt and a cotton blazer.

However, I didn't know the central heating was turned off over the weekend, so it was bloody freezing. Hopefully tonight I will dream a pattern for really warm socks that can be knitted up very quickly.

Rain, Rain, Go Away.

There was an incredibly dramatic thunderstorm last night, which seemed to start the very moment my bedside light was turned off. The whole of the patch of sky we could see from our bedroom window would light up in a sheet, and there seemed to be a lot more lightening than thunder; not that that made it any easier to sleep through, because the light was quite startling. The cats were very unsettled, and couldn't decide if they wanted to be with us, or if a really good hiding place would be safer.

Eventually I fell asleep, so I don't know if the storm carried on all night but was just less impressive. I do know that it all really kicked off again at about 5:30, and that the cats were back on the bed by that time. I looked at the weather report app on my iPod, the next three days had the lightening icon, and the three days after that are all illustrated with the heavy rain icon. With that weather prediction in mind for the week, clearly this evening is the perfect time for us to notice an ominous and very loud creaking that seems to be coming from the roof.

Slightly Chilled.

Today's weather was mostly notable for a twenty degree drop in temperature, which meant it felt really quite cold, and, even though I thought I had dressed for the conditions (a long sleeve dress, tights and tall boots), by the end of the working day I felt physically tired from just being a bit chilly all day. Naturally this called for Gentlemen's Relish on toast with a nice hot cup of tea and the second part of a time-travel adventure that I am enjoying very much.

After that I spent some time this evening decorating my Sack Person's Pod in "Little Big Planet" in a loosely steam-punk motif. If the Play Station Network was up I could take a screen shot and post it for you, but as it is you'll just have to take me at my word when I say it was half an hour very well spent; and that was before I even started playing the game itself.

My feet still haven't fully defrosted, but I have slippers on, with a fleecy blanket over the top and Edith sitting on top of that, so I hope to be less zombie-like by the time I go to bed.

Philadelphia 2011!

Philadelphia! It took thirteen hours to get here, with one traffic jam, a detour through Washington's rush hour traffic and a flaming eighteen wheeler at a nice safe distance on the other side of the highway (one of the wheels exploded when we went past - which was pretty exciting!)What is with the heavy rain every time I come to visit you? It does not make a girl feel very welcome you know.

However I do appreciate that you are clearly the place for conferences, as my friend Danny was also here and I haven't seen him in years so it was lovely to have lunch and catch up with him.

After lunch, I went to Blick to buy art supplies; Lush to buy moisturiser etc; and then Grocery for a vegan wrap and a cupcake.

Now I'm back at the hotel, hoping to dry off before going for curry with my husband and other philosophers.

Ah Philadelphia! Love you!

Shake It 'Til You're Warm.

It rained all day today, so by the evening I felt cold and miserable. I came home and had a nice hot cup of tea whilst curled up under a blanket with Edith, but that didn't thaw me out.

Clearly the cure for this was to to do a Zumba workout for 25 minutes. After that I was MUCH warmer, in fact my biceps were toasty-warm to the touch (Doc was impressed!), and I was much happier because it turns out that dancing around your living room is fun.

Ok. Fine. I am enjoying exercising regularly.

There, I said it.

Repetitively Beautiful.

I'm aware that I've been taking fewer pictures than usual, but it's that age old complaint: It's been snowing since the dawn of time & everything looks the same every bloody day.

With that in mind, please forgive a second photo of the Stick Cockerel in the snow. This one is different though, because there is a bit less snow so Mr Stick himself isn't frosted and you can see bird tracks around him. Plus there is a pinkish tinge from the setting sun.

Did I mention the snow?

Nancy Loves Sunshine.

 

Today I wanted to read, so I moved the comfy chair and the ottoman to face the window to get the best light. It occurred to me that the ottoman in a nice bright patch of sunshine would be appreciated by a little stumpy cat, so I scooped Nancy off the bed, carried her downstairs and encouraged her to sunbathe. Nancy loves sunshine, and this winter hasn't had very many sunny days for her to enjoy. She had a nice luxurious wash, and now she's twitching a bit in her sleep. Very cute.

Nancy has also recently discovered spooning with me is the best place to sleep at night, and whilst she starts off neatly compacted and taking up no space at all, she definitely does spread out over the course of a night; so then the sleeping me moves to give her more space, and that means Doc quite often wakes up to find himself perilously close to falling out of bed. Of course we all agree that this means we need to get a larger bed, to accommodate the space needs of both sleeping humans and felines.

This post is making me sound like a crazy cat lady, isn't it? I really don't go out of my way to pamper the cats, although I'm pretty sure Doc C wouldn't agree with that!

 

Do Not Taunt the Weather Gods (even if you are an atheist).

Naturally the weather read my post yesterday, cackled to itself and decided to show me who exactly is boss around here.

It actually did cackle, which was that single roll of thunder that very dramatically rumbled as I was getting ready for work.  It was raining then, but by the time we left the house it was heavy sleet.  Over the morning it felt like every time I turned to look out of the window behind me the weather had changed again, and the huge snowflakes that turned up mid-morning built up impressively quickly. So first my doctor's appointment was postponed by the surgery until next week and then afternoon classes were cancelled; so we left early, got some lunch and came home.  Where Doc C and I curled up in our comfy cave and slept for the rest of the working day, we literally woke up at the time we usually get back from work.

It's been a very odd day.

Weather Augers.

This week we are getting very mixed signals from the weather prognosticators, who all say different things from one day to the next and seem to be trying to contradict each other as much as possible.  A comparison reading of leads a girl to wonder: Will it snow? Will it be the worst snow storm this winter? Will it rain? Will it rain and snow? Will it be an ice storm? Will it (and I really hate this portmanteau word) snizzle? Will it just be normal for January? What the hell is normal for January anyway?

I am exhausted just reading about it.

Of course there are two main difficulties, first, one's wardrobe must be considered for all of the possible weather permutations and, second, it's just such a palaver if it snows a fair amount, but not enough for a snow day to be declared.  Stupid weather.  Pick one type of precipitation then stick to it, and do so at a sensible time, so that we all know what we are supposed to be doing of a morning.

grumble... grumble... grumble My feet are cold! grumble... grumble... grumble...

Tree Buds and Video Games.

We went out for brunch this morning, and then went for a walk to work it off again.

I noticed there were several trees in bud, which is really shortsighted on the part of the trees because we are expecting another bad cold snap next week. I was taking photos of the buds when Doc C pointed out a really tiny nest. We couldn't work out if it was a bird nest or an insect nest, but it's pretty impressive that it's so well built that it has survived the whole winter so far.

Then we came home and I had a lovely nap with Edith in the loft.  Then Doc C napped with both cats whilst I played "Little Big Planet 2", and it is SO cool. There is an whole level made of cake, Batternburg Cake, where you can grab and throw blobs of jam. Plus there is another great soundtrack, which includes the disco classic "A Fifth of Beethoven" which is so damn funky.

It has been a fun Saturday.

A Practical Fashion Notion.

Given the option I would rather be too cold than too hot, but I am getting a bit tired of feeling like there is a constant chilly draft down my neck.  My shoulders just feel uncomfortably clammy, like I'm wearing a t-shirt that isn't quite dry on the back.  Ugh.

What do you think my chances are of training on of the cats to let me wear them like a stole?  My cat Morag used to happily be carried around like that and it was very cosy, but I suspect Edith would find it undignified and Nancy will be convinced it's a plot to kill her (Nancy thinks taking out the recycling is a plot to kill her, she's what you might call jumpy).

Maybe I need to knit myself a cape with an interior pocket to put a hot water bottle in.  That would probably give me an oddly shaped hunch, but that's a small price to pay for finally thawing out my scapula.

Winter Sunset.

On the way home some enormous fluffy snowflakes landed on the windscreen and you could see the pattern of the ice crystals really clearly.  I tried to take a photo, but it was really difficult to focus on it so the white spec that I actually captured in the shot turned out to be the moon.

I still had my camera out when we hit the stretch of road that faces the sunset in the evening.  So I snapped some pictures of the gorgeous orangey pink horizon instead.  It's definitely one thing that North Carolina does really very well, and I particularly like the colours against the monotones of the telegraph wires, the mountains and the snow.

Yes, if it wasn't for that bloody Hot Tub sign on the right I'd be really quite chuffed with this photo.

Snow Wednesday.

The University was closed today because of the snow, so I read a lot and Doc did a lot of work; whilst the cats mainly found new and exciting ways to sit on me and sleep.  This morning I woke up with both felines snuggled up to me, and whilst Edith has been following me around all day, Nancy was quite content to make herself a nest out of my pajamas and just stay there for the past 9 hours.

After lunch Doc remembered he had an appointment for a check-up, so we did venture in to town and made a run to the supermarket to buy more staple foods for the larder.  I never want to be in the position where we are even close to being stranded with no tea in the house.

I also took this opportunity to post my Mum's birthday present!  Which means it's only going to be a month or so late!  I am TERRIBLE at getting to the post office when I have a parcel to be sent out.  This one came to Boston with us, had one or two things added to it, and then came all the way back home to sit on our coffee table.  It is a well traveled gift already, and it's still got an ocean to cross.

Skull Cupcake Tray.

After breakfast this morning I washed up the skull-shaped cupcake baking sheet that I bought in Boston, so I could try it out.  I was hoping they would work out well enough to take to Randy and Laura's when we went over to play "Arkham Asylum".

The snow got worse and worse, so first of all our game day had to be postponed until next weekend, and then we started to think we were going to be snowed in for a while.  I thought I'd make the cupcakes anyway, but then Doc C told me we didn't have any eggs, so I couldn't.

Now this was a worry, because we then realised we didn't have a whole bunch of other stuff we might need if we did get stuck in the house; like toothpaste and cat litter.  Yikes.  Fortunately there was a break in the blizzard for about a couple of hours, and we were able to go shopping.  

Tomorrow there will be skull shaped cakes.

Snow Bird.

Our house' mascot, the Stick Cockerel, is still outside on the porch and playing in the snow quite happily.  Here we see him making a Snow Angel, or perhaps having a little nap after a busy afternoon of sledging.

It has snowed all day, and started getting heavier at about 3 so we came home early and immediately had a nap ourselves.  The first week back at work after a holiday is just exhausting, isn't it?

Fire and Snow.

It's supposed to start snowing this evening and keep snowing until Saturday; in other words, it will snow all day Friday.

Hello there gas fireplace!

I suspect you will be spending an awful lot of time with me and the cats this weekend.

Wrapped Up Warm.

The weather in Boston has been as predicted, that is to say, OMG SNOW!

Our B&B is toasty warm though, the thermostat is set at 75, which is much too hot for us to be able to sleep actually so we've had the windows open every night we've been here.  The first night we were here we also bundled the duvet off the bed and put it on the chair, and when we came back the next day it had been put back on the bed.  So the next night I re-made the bed with a thin cotton throw and put the duvet on top of the wardrobe with the spare pillows.  That was perfectly comfortable to sleep with, and the next morning I re-made the bed to indicate that this was a conscious bedding choice on our part.  There was no change that day, but the next we found that our chosen bed-spread was swapped out for a light weight but fleecy blanket, and the cotton throw was missing entirely from the room!  We joked that the cleaning crew were worried that we were a bit soft in the head and didn't know better than to freeze when there were plenty of blankets in easy reach.

This evening, after we came back from sorting out Doc C's conference stuff, an electric heater had been put in our room as well.

There is simply no way that we are going to be allowed to be cold this Christmas.  I'm starting to think there is a team of Jewish mothers keeping our room in order.

Boxing Day in Boston.

I've always liked Boxing Day, because it's the day when you get to play with all your presents and eat any food that's been left over.  Of course that's a traditional Boxing Day in your own home, so it's slightly different when you are staying in a B&B in Boston; what you do then is get a tattoo and shop for cameras.  It's not a tradition as such, but I really think we ought to consider this as a staple of the holiday period.

I made an appointment with the same tattoo artist that did my key about a week before we came, and I'd already e-mailed him some images to give him an idea of the design I wanted.  It's an open book on my left wrist, and I am particularly tickled to think it was paid for by the Christmas money given to me by my colleagues in the English Department.  That is just dead appropriate, don't you think?

I also had enough money to get a new digital camera, so there has been much on-line researching which finally led me to go to Best Buy and purchase a Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS5.  Naturally I couldn't remember any specific detail of the information I'd read once I was actually inside the shop (and Best Buy employees are notably lack lustre in the day after Christmas), but I did know what I wanted the camera to do and the sort of price range I was looking for.  In the end I got the shop floor model, so it was on sale and then further discounted which meant I could also afford to buy a 4GB memory card for it.  Nice.  There will be no photo left untaken!

Now it's snowing, with the forecast being for it to be a blizzard; in fact the amount of snow we are expecting is being discussed in feet rather than inches.  Sounds like the perfect time for me to hole up in our room and work my way through the operating manual for my new camera, whilst periodically washing and moisturising the fresh ink on my wrist.

Little House in the Snow.

We did walk around the pond today, so technically I have actually left the house.  The house in this photo is our house, and that little red dot to the left is the Mini.

The pond has, as you can see, frozen over and I really hope the fish are ok.  They must be used to this though, right?

 

 

Third Day Itch.

We were snowed in again today, which after the third day is starting to wear a bit thin frankly.  Today we really did try to leave, but we only managed to drive about 10 feet from our front door before the Mini's wheels lost traction in the powdery snow and just started to spin.

It was too chilly to sit still, so I baked cookies, deep cleaned the kitchen sink and put up that insulating cling-film stuff on the windows in the bedroom and bathroom; all whilst watching a SyFy marathon of really bad horror movies.

Hopefully we can get in tomorrow.

The Traditional Pie of Christmas.

The blizzard finally made it's appearance, and so the University was closed today - Snow Day!  Woo!

I'd made mincemeat yesterday, following a recipe in Nigella's "How to Be A Domestic Goddess" which is really easy to make and delicious.  It's cooking apples, raisins, currants, almonds, lemon juice, zest, mixed spices, sugar and cider.  Unless you forgot to buy cider, in which case why not improvise with that bottle of Chardonnay that's been lurking in the fridge?  Also don't forget the rum, but you can skip the suggested cherries if you like.  Basically you put everything in a large saucepan, simmer it until it goes pulpy and there you have it.

Today was clearly pastry making day, so we could have some mince pies and a nice cup of when Doc C had finished his grading quota for the day.  These were gone almost as soon as they were cool enough to eat, but I've still got half the dough left and two-thirds of the mincemeat so there will be more tomorrow!  YUM!

A Blow to the Christmas Spirit.

Today Doc C and I were on somewhat of a mission, we made a list of everything we needed to buy, loaded all the recycling and rubbish into the car and then we went to town.  The list was mainly things that we might need whilst snowed in, which there is not a sign of so far I have to say, and included such necessities as whiskey, apples and draught excluding stuff.

We completed our mission within the alloted time frame and then came home to put up the lights on the veranda before the hotly anticipated arrival of snow.  

Whilst helping Doc to wire the lights through the kitchen window, I managed to hit myself in the head.  If this were a sit-com it would have been something seasonally appropriate, but in real life it was actually a very large wok which I knocked off it's hook and onto my head.  Doc came running in, and made me sit down then he checked me for any signs of concussion, but I think I'm ok.  Bit of a headache, but that's about it.  Edith kissed it better, well, really she just likes the taste of my hair product I think so it was more an affectionate grooming.

We were planning to go to a friend's party this evening, but the wok to the head took the party mood right out of me, so we stayed at home instead.  I put up some of the draught excluders, but I've left the rest to do in the morning.  Oddly putting up insulation is far less fun then putting up decorations, weird that eh?

Friday Night - Before the Predicted Snow Storm.

We're going to my Department's Christmas Party this evening, which should be quite fun actually.  It's a very good thing that it's this evening, because this weekend we have been promised a blizzard.  In fact the University has already re-scheduled the exams that were supposed to take place on Monday to Wednesday, I'm assured that this is completely without precedent so this is clearly going to be some serious snow.

I'm already planning the supplies we'll need to buy tomorrow morning to survive the predicted long snow-pocalypse weekend - Mostly this involves having all the ingredients required to bake mince-pies and gingerbread houses, but I also have my eye on some draught excluding caulking cord for the window frames.  I am determined to stay warm this year, and I've been reading this blog post about things you can do to keep heat in when you live in a rented home with an eye to making that a reality.  Of course my top tips to staying warm over the winter is plenty of tea and a cat or two scattered about the place.

How Tuesdays Should Always Be.

If there is anything better than coming home early from work, it's coming home early from work, having a nap with your loving pets and being woken by the smell of banana bread baking in the kitchen.

Also, in other news, it snowed a bit.

When life Gives You Snow, Make Hot Chocolate.

I stayed at home today, thanks to the combination of a bad headache and a heaping helping of snow.

Doc had a meeting so he still drove into campus, but the Mini is front wheel drive so he actually had a bit of a challenge just getting up the incline of the driveway and onto the main road.  It took him three tries, but he took a good run up and made it eventually.

I made myself some porridge and went back to bed with the cats.  They mostly slept, whilst I knitted and read "Freakonomics".

Doc came home at 12, and said he was really glad that I hadn't gone in today because the roads were awful already.  He'd brought home a lot of work to do, so he disappeared into the study.  

I felt much better this afternoon so I took the opportunity to whip up a batch of heart-shaped butter cookies and some hot chocolate; because if this isn't the perfect weather to snuggle up with a warm snack and a good book, then I really don't know when is.

The Cat in Winter.

Doc C took Edith outside for a few minutes yesterday morning, naturally he got bored well before she did. For one thing because she's admirably prepared for such weather with a luxurious fur coat which keeps her toasty warm, and for another she's very vain and knows how gorgeous she looks against white.  

I suspect this is how she was given the distinctly snowy name of Mrs Zhivago, because if any cat would look good snuggled up to Julie Christie in a horse drawn sleigh it would be our Edith.

Snowy Saturday.

It started snowing yesterday, which was fine with me because I had my Coraline coat to bundle up in and besides it was only a light dusting so nothing really built up.  This morning there was some more light snow, which was really pretty; so we picked up some toasted cuban sandwiches and cafe con leche (there is a cuban cafe across the road from our house) and went for a walk around a lake.

On the way back we stopped to buy yarn because I am going to learn how to knit socks and I've got an idea for a crocheted teddy-bear sized amigurumi.

Apart from that I've been curled up in the warmest part of the house, the mezzanine conveniently enough, and reading Chine Mieville's debut novel "King Rat".

It has been a very nice Saturday.

Cat in the Rain.

Taking the cats out for a walk is definitely more fun for them then it is for me, because they don't really do very much apart from eat grass and sniff things; but they move just fast enough and just far enough away to stop me from reading a book or something.

Last night I tried walking both cats at the same time, and, of course, they each wanted to go in the opposite direction to the other.  It was not fun for any of us, so I brought them back in and Edith threw a tantrum.  I'm not kidding!  She miaowed, she clawed at the door, she threw herself on the floor, she tried to push the screen off the window and finally tried to climb up the window frame.  It was quite a display.  Doc asked if I really thought taking her outside was such a good idea after all.

But I still do, because for one thing I know that Doc wants to be able to let the cats out by themselves when we live somewhere suitable with a private garden or something.  When that does eventually become a possibility I will just feel a lot more comfortable if I've been able to see them outside on the lead first, and be 100% certain they know how to get home before I'll trust them out there by themselves.

Anyway, this evening it was raining and had been all day - So I thought Edith wouldn't want to be out there for very long, because she hates water.  And that assumption would be wrong.  Apparently Edith hates water unless it's rain, and that's a very important distinction clearly.  Good thing I'd put on my new raincoat and wellies, because we were out there for a while.  The thing's I'll do for these cats.

By the way, I edited this picture in Picnik and added in the watery texture that way, which is a new effect that I love.  That's pretty much what it looked like for me anyway, I'm just pleased none got on the camera lens itself.

Saturday Afternoons Alright for Platform Video Games.

It's a rainy Saturday and, because the semester starts on Tuesday, the whole town is swarming with students and their families.  We ventured out for breakfast (well, I'd already had some yogurt and muesli so it was second breakfast for me really) and the diner was packed.  Then we were going to go shopping, but soon changed our minds when we realised the roads and car parks were just bumper-to-bumper with out of towners who had no idea where they were going.

So we came home and I fully intended to tidy the house and do some laundry.  Instead I played Little Big Planet for 5 hours.  Time very well spent because I cracked a couple of levels and collected a shed load of new swag.

Still Too Hot.

Currently Edith and I are on the mezzanine, lying on floor cushions in front of a large fan.  The only reasons I currently contemplating moving for are 1) dinner and 2) Project Runway.  Edith got fed an hour ago but she might have some important chasing of Nancy to do I suppose; otherwise I don't see her going anywhere.

This is Edith on Catnip.

Edith was in one of her crazy moods, which tend to happen in the evening in the summer because during the day she's just too overcome with the heat to move.  She's like a heroine in a Tennessee Williams play.

When Edith loses it we really have to play with her, or she will start gnawing the furniture, quite literally.  My bedside table, clock, coffee table and foot stool all have Edith's teeth marks on the corners now.  This evening, the moment she started looning around, I picked a leaf of fresh cat nip and rubbed it on the kickeroo, and then just stood back to take photos.

As you can see there are five distinct phases of Edith's private nip parties, these are:

1. Oh Hello!  You smell amazing.
2. Come here, you fool!
3. I WILL KICK YOU!
4. Blissed out.
5. And relax.

My favourite of these stages is definitely when she is blissed out, look at that happy little face!

The catnip high lasts about ten minutes, but once it wears off she is usually a lot calmer and everyone can relax.  Especially Nancy. 

Muggy Sunday = Horror Movie Marathon.

It's too warm today, and there is a thunderstorm hanging around that just won't break, so it's really muggy as well.  There's nothing to be done, other than sit underneath a ceiling fan and watch cheesy horror movies.  Fortunately I've got plenty of material on hand because I bought a 50 film box-set of "classic" horror movies in DC, which is delightfully haphazard in it's quality.  There's roughly a dozen early Hitchcock's mixed in with really random schlock; I just watched Tod Slaughter in "The Dark House" which was a really melodramatic adaptation of "Woman in White", and I'm currently watching "The Long Hair of Death" which is even worse than it sounds.

The only one in the house who enjoys this weather is Nancy, who is lolling around in attitudes of stumpy cat joy.

Temperature Control.

It's very exciting in the office today because not only do I have a new Mac (I actually got it on Monday, but I wasn't able to really use it until Tuesday and then I was all headachey which is why I didn't mention the Mac joy previously), but I have turned on... the air conditioning in my office!

This may not sound like much, but temperature control is still an alien concept to me.  So much so that, all day yesterday, I sat in my office and stewed in the warm and humid office with my headache.  It was literally only when a faculty member gave me a funny look, and asked why I was sitting in an overly warm office that I realised I had the power to change that.

Today was entirely different, I was comfortably cool and it was just delightful.  I just wilt in warm weather so it does make a hell of a lot of difference to me, but I am still aware of the amount of energy that air conditioning requires, so I'm intending to use it sparingly.  Promise.

Humid, With Scattered Outbreaks of Natural Disaster Movies.

Today has been bad movie day.  

First I watched "Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back" instead of the USA v. GB match, and then the SyFy channel played a blinder with "Category 6: Day of Destruction" followed by the marvelously named "Stonehenge Apocalypse".  After this it's "Annihilation Earth", which I don't think we'll be watching actually, but I do appreciate the whole Armageddon theme they are going for this evening.  I bloody love the SyFy Channel.

That may sound like a very lazy day, and it's true I've done very little today.  In my defence it's been warm and humid with thunderstorms, which means Edith and I have been listless and sleepy because neither of us do well in muggy weather.  The pair of us flopped in the living room with the ceiling fan on all day.  I've napped and knitted, Edith has napped and tried out every possible piece of furniture in the quest to find the coolest seat in the room.

Nancy on the other hand loves this weather, she has been rolling around in a classic display of small cat hedonism.

Pattern Conversion.

It was sunny outside today, but it was chilly in my office and I was wearing knee length jeans with a thin shirt.  I ended up curled up in my chair, hugging my knees to my chest for warmth.  Doc C suggested that he take me home at lunchtime for a change of clothes, but that seemed like a wasted journey to me; so I just wrapped myself up in a fleece blanket.  That made me look totally insane, but at least it was warm and I only had to explain to one member of the faculty that, no no, this was not a security blanket.

So this evening I am going to buckle down and start the short summer-weight cape I've been skirting around making.  The hurdle has been that none of the yarn I have corresponds to any of the patterns for capes that I like; this isn't an insurmountable problem, but it does require the application of arithmetic to work out the difference in the gauges, and then conversion of the pattern based on that.

Which will take me a little while and I need to concentrate, so I'd better get it done before the finale of "Glee" starts, because O.M.G. REGIONALS!  Squee!

Sleeping Through Saturday.

Well, nothing much to report because I've been asleep pretty much all day today.  I woke up, fed the cats, had breakfast and then just felt like lying down for a minute. Didn't wake up again until 3:15 this afternoon.

I think it's the change in temperature, but it might be a combination of that, my new job and a little bit of residual Mono I suppose.

Of course Doc C is of the opinion that all I need to do is go for a brisk walk.  I feel certain he would have got on extremely well with my Granmouse.

And Relax...

Perfect Saturday afternoon - Eating chocolate digestives with a freshly brewed pot of tea, whilst re-reading a book I loved as a child, "Over Sea, Under Stone" by Susan Cooper, and listening to a thunderstorm outside.

I might do some knitting in a bit, or I might re-purpose some waffle weave undershirts that I've finally accepted are too big for me and look terrible as they are.

Almost certainly I'll be watching "Battlestar Gallactica" with Doc C.

Knitting and Reading. Yes, I'm Living The Dream!

It's ok!  I've worked out that my glasses case makes an effective book weight, because it's a good size and weight and the bottom of it has a slightly rubbery coating.  I have read two murder mysteries and the first third of a kids' book so far this week, and my sweater is coming along at a cracking pace. 

Just in time for the weather to become warm.

Next on my list is to read my way through all of Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes stories in chronological order, whilst crocheting a summer weight silk blend cape.

Vintage Floral Accessory.

This is the vintage silk scarf I bought in Asheville this weekend.  I like how it has a fairly simple print, but with tasteful clusters of insane neon tinted roses. 

I'm not sure if the roses were that colour originally, or if a previous owner got creative with some felt-tip pens. 

Either way, it is pretty rocking.

Snow Cat.

Today I let Edith out for a minute or two, under my supervision of course, to investigate the snow.  Quite honestly I assumed she would not like the feel of the cold under her paw and change her mind.

She actually didn't seem to mind the snow too much, not even when she misjudged the depth and disappeared up to her arm-pits (paw-pits?). 

Edith is intrepid.