The trajectory of smell

It's downright amazing to me, and a little horrifying, the things smell can do. For instance: In my apartment of kitty fun and happy good times, the litter boxes are in what is socially termed the guest bathroom. And way in the back of it, in the tub. Make a good hard U-turn through the apartment from there, and you end up where I sleep. You also are following the exact path the potent smell of cat poo takes through the place.

I really don't know how it does it. I do know a few other things: that 60%-80% of Cree family cats prefer not to bury their poo; that they go in cycles, sometimes pooping during the night, sometimes during the day; that the vectored odor comes in waves and lasts for a good 20-30 minutes; that slightly to the left or right of my usual sleeping spot, the smell is diminished or nonexistent. Last night was just intolerable, and I would have closed my door or buried the turds myself had I not been pinned down by two fuzzy gray things. All bets are off when the gray things are involved. Or the black moof. Also the B&Ws. See how things get complicated. (Clearly I did just barely tolerate it till the waning, but not without thrashing and cussing at the gods.)

They eat a coupla different dry foods, and one, which is the super duper healthy made-from-raw-food kind, just ignites that smell right up. Some of you have experienced it your own selves (J&M). I'd keep that bathroom door mostly closed, but someone peed behind it the last time I did. (Not J&M.)

Pity the slinker

Evolution has been cruel to the poor earthworm and his moist brethren and sistren. They live in earthy underground worm caverns. They probably even have a Wegmans. Then it rains. They must escape their happy wormy homes else they'll perish. So they head out. Where bad things happen to them. Bad things! Not fair. Not fair at all!

Fie on thee, evolution! What did the worm ever do to you?

[breathe]

GORGEOUS out this weekend and today and Melissa threw a wonderful tea open house Saturday and I sat outside yesterday reading and it was like 80 and the cats got to hang out by the screens watching chipmunks and ahhhhhhh.

More hobo names for your consideration

Pie-Pants Donkeytoes
Paul Chewer-of-Cans and Rosy-Cheeked
Ratsoother Matt
Knifey (Erica)
Jess "Feistylocks" Railrider
Puddinhead Cala Rico Salamander Jones
AmyJoTrolleywalla
Megan

Sorry to bring you down, but I was thinking

April may be the cruelest month, but look what we've done to April:

Waco siege culmination: April 19.
Oklahoma City bombing: April 19.
Columbine: April 20.
Now this ...

I heard someone once mention how the enormity of a horrific occurrence can turn a place name into an event. Like these, like Tiananmen Square.

like fairies or sumthin.

All right, here I go with my effort to write more, thus entertaining at least two people I know and hopefully producing some decent stuff once in a while.

Weather is finally turning. Of course, it seemed to be turning before too. It could turn back again. It's still 40 out right now, so that's not so bad. I will probably hear dripping all night long. From outside. The song of melting snow. Go, snow! Go! GET THEE ON THE NIGHT TRAIN OUT OF HERE!

Bliss has come by to say Hello. I shared my salmon with her tonight. She liked it. I have to close Rogue and Salem in my room when I eat salmon in order to eat in peace. But I save them some. OH MY GOD SHE IS SO FREAKING CUTE I can't even TELL you. I need to win the lottery so I can stay home with them and give them all the glorious attention they deserve.

Otherwise, I'm beginning the quest for Meaning in my life. See, in Florida, I was super unhappy, but I had Purpose: Getting Out. (Also, Disney World.) Now, I'm out. So now what? You see my dilemma. A few things to try:

• volunteering, like at the Cayuga Nature Center
• drawing more
• writing more
• probably not looking at the new Disney bridal gowns anymore
  
• finding that damned (not really!) someone to share this nonwork time with. Heck, maybe we could even share work time together. I'm really quite bored with the work I'm doing now. Oh, so I guess that's another point:
• starting to look for a new job? I don't feel like I've paid my dues at this one yet. I suppose that entails feeling like I'm doing well at it. But I can't get interested enough to. Or, I guess there's even a difference between being interested and caring. Some of it, I just don't care about.

"Lost" is on shortly. Wish I could justify staying up for it; the last two weeks have been OK. Being this tired, though ... well. I can at least pull out a colored pencil and draw a princessy lady. One day I will turn my princessy ladies into a moneymaking machine. Not a good name for the company, though. Princessy Lady Moneymaking Machine. I think we'll end up with something Monkeylike.

Ah crud, I came up with a great hobo name for Jenny today. Something -- oh yeah, Stinkeye Jenny. Cos she gave me it! The stinkeye! STINKEYE JENNY.

Other ideas:
Trentsmelling Elly
Futuresmelling Blakaroo Winkins
Idaho Sockstealer Hawkensmithy
Cashew-hat Melissa
Mary "Normothermia" Noontime

Yellow AND WHITE

I have decided to stick Mother Nature with a good "TAKE THAT!" by ... um ... buying daisies.

SO THERE! Just WATCH me enjoy ... your other products! You!

Weirdness is afoot

Yesterday the birds started banging into the windows. This never happens. Jenny noticed it happening at her house today, too. And turkeys went by yesterday. Six of them! After a night when I'd had a dream about turkey vultures!

It was a weekend of High Loki Days, too, from a dirty litter garbage bag breaking open in my car to a bottle of wine breaking on the floor to faulty new electronics, more puddles of wine, burned pie fixins, and bones in my salmon. But, in counterbalance, there were visits with Uncle Munky and J&M, plus some excellent old-timey music at the Rongo.

Snow has been whorling all day. And birds are banging into windows. They're confused by this April, confused by why the world is still brown (till it became white today). And the flowers. Won't someone think of the flowers? Last week, I told them. RUN, I said.

Holy running water, Batman

check out this rental in town

(Besides direwolves)

If April showers bring May flowers, what does April snow bring?

Days With Elly

Overheard at Animal Kingdom:

1. That's our grandson. He filled his heinie with ice cubes. --woman explaining the boy squatting over ice

2. Follow the Chinese monks! --two boys, no monks in sight, Chinese or otherwise

Spoken at Animal Kingdom:
If I'm gonna eat off anyone's pants, I don't want it to be Mickey Mouse. --re: plate that is Mickey's pants

The glaring sky

Winter encumbers us, makes the average and mundane difficult and unlikable. Coats and boots hold us down and back. The sky is a bad mood and drips its disgruntlingness down where we can't avoid it. April Winter is spiteful, like a co-worker no one ever really liked who doesn't want you enjoying yourself. It's Dwight, just proving a point.

I look like a little Eastern European girl at the feet, white stockings with cross-strapped black shoes.

The man who has an office but won't close his door is on the phone, letting me hear his whole end of the conversation, fake hacking for the entertainment of the other conversant. I take words and throw them into new places, verbal yoga. Bend this way now!

So are we having any fun yet? he yells. Yesterday he tried to foist his university umbrella on someone who kept insisting she had one already. Your parapluie cannot be as good as mine, the unspoken. I have a brick,someone just told him. Don't make her mad,says the assistant. She knows. She knows who wants to do what with the brick.