Friday, May 14, 2010

Fiona Friday - Strange Things That Lure Kitties (plus some random babble)

I don't believe I've ever had a cat who wrestled cereal boxes, before.

In addition to wrestling unique objects, Fiona has brought our attention to the fact that we never actually finished removing the wallpaper in our bedroom. Don't ask why we never finished and have one painted wall, one stripped and two partially stripped. Okay, you can ask, but it's a lousy story.

Now and then, Fi climbs up the guitar case and onto a cabinet, from which she reaches out and takes a bite of loose wallpaper. I'll be reading away and hear a rrrrrriiiiiip noise and there's Little Fi with a strip of wallpaper in her mouth. I think I know what our next project is going to be (after the kitchen painting and flooring, which is taking us for-freaking-ever because things like broken appliances, backed-up pipes and electrical issues kind of get in the way).

In other news: After whipping out those 5 reviews, earlier in the week, I stalled out. But, that may not be a bad thing because posting 5 reviews at once and then not posting again means I averaged out to less than 1 post per day, this week. I'll continue to do mass posting if that's what works, but I'll try to always leave some break time in between, if I do so. It's just what's working for me, these days.

Just finished reading:

A Hundred Feet Over Hell by Jim Hooper - for the Vietnam Reading Challenge. It was so good I've been reading bits aloud to my husband. It's about a group of men who flew Bird Dogs (a type of Cessna plane that flew no faster than 130 mph -- low and slow) in and near the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Vietnam from 1968-69. There is a lot of exciting action and there are a few tear-inducing moments when pilots were lost, along with funny anecdotes about the goofball things the pilots did to unwind. One Hundred Feet Over Hell is just an all-around terrific read.

Recently Arrived:

Return to Paris by Colette Rossant
Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
Field Notes from a Catastrophe by Elizabeth Kolbert (Nick Hornby's fault - he mentioned it in Shakespeare Wrote for Money, which I will review soon) and
Ghost Hunting by Jason Hawes & Grant Wilson

All of those were acquired via Paperback Swap. Field Notes from a Catastrophe is about global warming and how it's affecting our world; you can see from my sidebar that I couldn't stand to wait and began reading it, immediately.

I also checked out a nice little stack of YA books from the library and one Christian book about how to stop being a worry wart. I'm reading one of the YA books, right now: Ruined by Paula Morris

I have not received any ARCs at all, lately. At the moment, I'm not accepting anything that will need to be reviewed before September, apart from one or two rare books I've requested that may or may not show up because I think they're first-come, first-serve and I'm poky. Kiddo is going off to college in the fall and I'm figuring I'll need some adjustment time to figure out what I'm going to do with myself, now that my stay-at-home mothering days will be over. Get a job? Travel? Go back to school? Return to painting, sewing and crafting? Spend time taking pictures of my newest baby (as if I don't do that enough, already)?

Just in front of that paw is a caterpillar. Smartyfurrypants tried to figure out how to get out the window, so I may have to share some of the other pics of Fi and the caterpillar, another time. It's been a few weeks; you can see the trees were still budding. We're in full leaf, now, and looking like a jungle.

Anyway, back to autumn. It'll be interesting, I think, to see what happens. Maybe I'll take dancing lessons. Or make daisy chains. Who knows? What do you think I should do?

15 comments:

  1. I love Fiona, she's a doll. :-) ARCs have been really slow for me too-which is fine, considering BEA is coming up and my bookshelves are overflowing. Have a great weekend!

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  2. It looks like Fiona is hugging the cereal box to me.

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  3. Marie,

    Fiona and I thank you. :) I always have leftover photos, even after all those Fiona Friday posts. She's such fun.

    I don't have BEA as an excuse, but I'm really looking forward to taking a little time off from ARCs, just for the change of pace and the time to make daisy chains. Hope you have a fabulous weekend, too!

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  4. Kathy,

    That's because the action photos sucked. She scoots as she wrestles and that was kind of a break moment. If she's tussling with something, the back feet are involved (you can see they're up against the box). Fi is one nutty girl.

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  5. I love Fiona :) My cats don't wrestle with cereal boxes, but I suppose I've never let them try. They do LOVE the bugs on the outside of the window thing. Even better are ones on the inside they can trap and eat though. And love the wallpaper story - so funny! She'll be so sad if you get rid of it ;)

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  6. Amy,

    Poor Fiona lives in a really cluttery house, but she makes the most of all those fun objects lying about. A little bit ago, she was chewing on the handles of my Bible Study tote bag. I just let her have at it.

    Don't you love the bug control? We have plenty of bugs for Fi to munch on, down here, even after the routine poisoning (a necessity in the Deep South). I think she'll be fine if/when we remove the wallpaper, since half the fun is climbing up the guitar case. LOL And, I will be happy if I ever have a single room completely finished. We do things so slowly . . . and I just never know when the husband is going to suddenly get the urge to move all the furniture back into an unfinished room. Argh! That's what happened in the bedroom. He just decided he wasn't doing it fast enough, so he might as well move everything back. My objections fell on selectively deaf ears.

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  7. I bet Fiona likes the rustling noise cereal makes inside the box (or maybe it's empty?) My cat likes to wrestle empty paper-towel tubes. It's nice that's she's helping you with the redecorating! You won't have to worry about all that messy wallpaper-removal work, she's taking care of it for you!

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  8. LOL - more proof that Fiona and Howie are related - when younger he routinely shredded cardboard boxes and grocery bags. At age 7, he's finally starting to mellow out just a bit.

    Love that she's "helping" with the wallpaper ;-)

    I LOVE Fiona Fridays!!

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  9. Jeane,

    That very well could be. Fiona definitely likes the rustling sound her tunnel makes. She does everything she can to find excuses to run through it. It's not an empty cereal box. Kiddo just stacked the boxes up in our dining area because he's the one who chose them and he wants to keep them handy. It's really great fun watching her wrestle with a cereal box. LOL

    Yes, true, she's being helpful. I should just move the bed so Fiona can get behind it and rip away. :)

    SuziQ,

    Ah, yes. Miss Fiona likes to munch down on cardboard boxes. Sometimes you'd think she's teething. She'll rub her neck against a box and then turn and sink her teeth into it. I've told her that's fine, but books are out. Munch on my books and she'll get a nice little sprinkling from the water bottle (after I'm done hollering).

    7 years to mellow? Holy Toledo. I was hoping for 3. :)

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  10. She sure is cute. Maddie has a think for empty boxes - she thinks they're created for her to sit in and she will go to great lengths to achieve that goal.

    I had no idea Jason and Grant had a book out! I'll have to see about getting it. I love Ghost Hunters.

    cjh

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  11. CJ,

    Thanks. I think boxes are cat magnets. All of my kitties have loved them, although Fiona's the first to wrestle them and I don't think my other kitties chomped on them the way Fi does. They're very crunchy. LOL

    I've never seen Ghost Hunters, but there are a bunch of people in my reading listserv who watch the show and they liked the book, so I figured it would be fun reading. I'm hoping to sneak it in, soon.

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  12. Fiona is so adorable! I love the individual quirks of each cat. My current cat eats plastic, but not just any plastic, it has to be a certain texture and thickness.

    And he, of course, throws it back up not long after eating it, so I don't see how it's worth it, but you know how they are! lol

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  13. Lisa,

    Thanks. :) I love their little quirks, too. My cat will munch on absolutely anything and, so far, we've discovered she likes to eat crackers, cheese, broccoli and scrambled eggs in addition to cat food. We were trying not to let her eat any human food at all, but it didn't last long!

    Yikes. I feel for you. It's not like you can really put things out of a cat's reach. They can climb anywhere!!

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  14. They grow so fast! Fiona is still lovely, and obviously, still curious!

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  15. Jenclair,

    Thank you. I think she's beautiful (but I might be a bit biased). :) Fi is painfully curious,to the point that she'll let out a mournful little cry if she can't get to what she's dying to see. The fireplace mantel is frustrating her, these days, as is my desktop (where I have piled books -- not exactly a safe place to explore).

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