Aussie was "welcomed" to the neighborhood today by a local cat. We went on a nice long walk around the block, to give herAussie some exercise so she will let me unpack rather than demand attention the rest of the evening (yes, I learned this trick in grad school: wear out dog => time to get work done).
As we were rounding the second block, there was a fluffy orange tabby cat sitting by a fence. It has a collar and tag so it clearly has an owner unlike the feral strays in our old neighborhood. Aussie doesn't mind cats. She was raised with one, so she generally either pays them no mind or tries to make friends with them (a hard habit to break her of in our old neighborhood). This cat proceeded to walk right up to the dog and smell her. Aussie, to her credit, just stood there. Didn't lunge, didn't move, didn't even lean towards the cat or try to sniff back. Then, unexpectedly, the cat changed attitude and proceeded to swat at my dog! And not just once, but multiple times!!
Aussie, again to her credit, didn't attack back. And we beat a path away from that cat, pausing about 20 feet away so I could assess for damage. When I looked up, the cat was RIGHT BEHIND US and proceeded to charge my dog a SECOND time and swat at her while hissing.
So we quickly moved around the corner. When I looked back, the cat was following us. It followed us around the corner and about half way down the next block. The orange tabby from hell was stalking me and my dog clearly with intention to harm. So we kept walking, checking frequently to see if was still behind us.
Shortly after the cat stopped and parked itself in a crouch under some bushes (lying in wait for it's next victim perhaps), a woman and her dog came around the corner. She promptly grabbed her dog and made a wide berth around the cat from hell exclaiming that she hates that cat. Apparently the cat has actually attacked her and her dog in the past, leaving her with some bite marks on her arm. Sounds like Aussie and I got of easy. Aussie is fine, a few tiny scratches around her nose, but nothing serious.
I hereby nickname the cat Psycho. We will be giving Psycho a wide berth from now on.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Orange tabby hell cat
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Sea of boxes
I am surrounded by a sea of boxes. I have successfully moved to my new apartment. My DirecTV was moved without a problem. My phone and internet also was switched seamlessly (I hear Verizon!).
Despite the fact that I do have home internet, posting will most likely be sparse for a couple of days. Why? Sea of boxes. So much unpacking to do (FYI, Food Network is great for background entertainment while unpacking).
Back to wrestling with shelf paper so I can unpack the kitchen.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Why moving the contents of my fridge will be a separate trip
What Your Fridge Says About You
You like to be surrounded by things you love. You aren't exactly greedy, but you can be materialistic at times.
You are a very thrifty person. You don't like to waste money... or food.
You are a very adventurous person. You love to try new things, and you get bored very easily.
You are responsible, together, and mature. You act like an adult, even when you don't feel like it.
You are likely to be married - and very busy.
Accurate...except for the whole married bit. But I am busy.
In college and grad school people used to come over and open my fridge. Just to look. Because my fridge looked like their mom's fridge in terms of contents. I have more fresh fruits and veggies and things to make things with (i.e. actually require cooking) than frozen or "instant" meals. Always have. Sigh. I guess I've had a "mature" fridge for years.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Danger defined
This morning as I was walking to get my coffee, I noticed a "coming soon" sign in the storefront across from the back entrance to my library. There used to be a jewler there. It was a family run jewler, been there for years and years, and finally everyone decided to retire and close up shop. I had been wondering what was going to take over that space, since it's prime real estate being right across the street from the main part of campus. Well, now I know.
The Naked Chocolate Cafe.
This is not good. Not. Good. At. All.
And not because the Naked Chocolate Cafe isn't good. It's very very good. Too good. I've waxed poetic about just how good it is in previous posts, referring to trips there as heavenly chocolate orgasms. They make this incredible European style drinking chocolate: hot chocolate so thick that you have to keep stirring it with your spoon so it doesn't solidify. And it's actually easier to eat their hot chocolate than to drink it.
Having a place like that across the street is dangerous. Because nothing says stress release like chocolate. And it's going to be across the street from the back door to my library. It will be way way too easy to pop across the street during a 15 minute afternoon break for a bit of indulgence. I already know I do not possess the willpower to resist something like that. A place like that across the street from work is danger defined indeed. I'm going to have to start going on extra long bike rides on the weekends to work off all the chocolate I will be consuming once it opens.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Memoir in brief
I've been tagged by my colleague KS. Dammit. And this meme is really hard. It's taken me awhile to come up with my answer.
The meme originated over an idea that was prompted by the book written by Larry Smith & Rachel Fershleiser: Not Quite What I Was Planning: Six Word Memoirs by Writers Famous & Obscure. It’s a compilation based on the story that Hemingway once bet ten dollars that he could sum up his life in six words. His words were, “For Sale: Baby Shoes, Never Worn.”
1. Write your own six word memoir.
2. Post it to your blog including a visual illustration if you would like
3. Link to the person who tagged you in your post and to this original post (http://herebaby.blogspot.com/2008/06/six-word-memior.html) if possible so we can track it as it travels across the blogsphere
4. Tag 5 more blogs with links
5. Don’t forget to leave a comment in the tagged blogs with an invitation to play
Drum roll please...my memoir would be titled:
Trying to live and love gracefully.Of course, if I could I'd add the subtitle: but not always succeeding.
I'm tagging the following people:
A Few of Mrs. Dude's Favorite Things
Good luck people! This was difficult (as evidenced by my desire for a subtitle).
Back into the chaos
So I'm back from ALA. I returned home on Wed., July 2nd and dove right back into the thick of things. I realize I'm two conferences behind on reports (NASIG and ALA), and I haven't posted a general update about things going on at work or with the apartment hunt. I'll start with the easy one, the general update. Watch for conference reports later this week as I get them written up. Here is the general update in a nice bulleted list:
*I found an apartment. The application was accepted while I was in Anaheim. I'll move in about two weeks. I spent my long holiday weekend cleaning, purging, and organizing so I can pack (I do not need office supplies in three different rooms on two different floors!). TWO WEEKS!! EEK! More details later.
*Much of my time at work the past three weeks has been spent training new staff. This week we also begin the interview process to hire my intern. Which means that once my new staff person starts to be independent, I'll have an intern to train. I now dub this the summer of staff training.
*The task force formed to facilitate the current phase of the reorganization at work has begun meeting. We're still trying to figure out what we're supposed to be doing and how to go about bringing together three departments/units into one department. We're beginning by examining workflows and trying to streamline them. I'm still trying to just go with the flow and reserve judgment about the end result.
*The dog is fine. Sending her to the kennel with her own food seems to have alleviated the post-kennel gastrointestinal issues she was having. I think the weather (rather humid) is slowing her down as her energy level was really low over the weekend. Either that or she was exhausted watching me go up and down the stairs ten-thousand times as I sorted and organized everything to prepare to pack my house. Fortunately, she continues to not be bothered by thunderstorms or fireworks, which made my life much easier given the neighborhood festivities surrounding the 4th of July.
That's it. My life right now is consumed by moving preparations and work. At least it's keeping me out of trouble, right?
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