Seven.Caged.Tigers

First, an update. The Honda is gone. The kid came by on Friday and bought it after having AAA take a look at it. Apparently it was mechanically sound and a good value for his money. We’re just happy to be rid of it–that’s even more a reward than the actual cash we now have in hand (but that is going to quickly be used to pay off some bills). No more pink Honda woo-hoo!

On Friday we celebrated our sale by going out to eat. My mother spent the night so it was a quiet, early-ish evening. I’m fine with that though. I’ve been unusually tired lately. The time change on Saturday night only further complicated things. Saturday we got some yummy Thai, went to Borders (where I bought a few gifts for x-mas) and then visited Home Depot (where JT bought a few gifts for himself). We also spent a good deal of the day doing yard work. JT raked (I hate raking) while I cut down all our perennials and yanked out all the annuals. Our yard looks very tidy now.

I really don’t have any other good news (or bad news). Life is flowing along at its usual pace. I did get to talk to dear ol’ sis on Sunday morning which was really nice. She lives in a whole other country (and we’re not talking about Canada either) and we don’t get to speak very often at all.

Tonight might mark the end of our long journey with the Honda. A kid desperate for a new car after whacking a deer is stopping by for a test drive. His pop apparently already gave him the go-ahead with our pricetag attached–$2100. He told us he was going to the bank and that he wanted to meet this afternoon so he could get to AAA before they close. It seems as if he is DEFINITELY expecting to buy it.

My driveway will seem empty without ye olde Honda Accord. She’s lived a good life with us–7+ of her 13 years. It’s time for the pink bomber to go live with somebody else. She has been replaced by a 2000 Z71 Silverado. Hubby seems to think that this vehicle is much more manly and “cool” than the pink 1992 Accord. I can’t imagine why (and he’ll never admit it’s pink).

In any case, cross your fingers for us. I hope to have about $2k in my sweaty palms tonight. I like fondling money.

I am perversely attracted to the idea of my alma mater Lake Superior State University playing basketball against my other alma mater Michigan State University. If you know anything about either school you will get the joke. The horror will be realized on November 7 in East Lansing. I won’t be there–I can possibly make myself enjoy a game that is so incredibly one-sided. It is exhibition, but still…what possessed either team to partake in that kind of massacre?

LSSU is a small University with a division 2 basketball team (hockey is their only division 1 sport) and a roster consisting entirely of athletes from Michigan and Ontario (all local, of course). LSSU doesn’t recruit basketball players–they only have the funds to recruit for hockey. These are basically guys who showed up on campus, tried out for the team, and are playing. Even more hilarious is the fact that of the fifteen names listed on the roster, eleven are freshman. They hail from illustrious towns such as Trout Creek, Bark River, Rudyard, Negaunee, and Traverse City in Michigan. The school’s entire student body is less than 2800. I graduated there with a BS in 1999 (Political Science).

Compare that to Michigan State University (I graduated with a BA in 2001 in Telecommunications) which is a massive, self-contained University. Lake Superior is the smallest in Michigan while MSU is the largest. MSU’s student population is somewhere over 43,000 on any given year. It’s huge–and it seems even more massive because it’s all basically contained on one huge chunk of land. It’s not like University of Michigan that is spread throughout an entire city. MSU is of course a decent (usually) division 1 basketball Big 10 school (vs. GLIAC for LSSU). The fourteen-member squad is taller, definitely more talented, and rather well respected. Sure there are lots of guys from Michigan (including Muskegon, Grand Rapids, Detroit, and three from Flint) but somehow I think the whole recruiting thing attracts better talent.

I hate to be critical of my cherished little LSSU (I have no real love for MSU–they cost me mucho buckos), but what in the freakin’ hell are they thinking? The world may never know…

Over the weekend I got the best news ever. Well…maybe that’s an exaggeration, but still the news that my post office will stay open a little longer is outstanding. JT and I own a home in a village. There is no local delivery which means that we have no choice but to pick up our mail and packages at the post office. The hours were 6am to 5pm M-F and 9am to 12pm S. Considering there are many people (me included) who can’t get to the PO box before 5pm that proved rather, uh, challenging. And since I can’t have a real mailbox I was really, really annoyed by the whole situation.

It seems that the UPS Store is giving the real post office a run for their money. Because of competition (not because the customers are generally pissed off) , they are now open from 6am to 6pm M-F with window hours until 6pm (they used to end at 4:30pm before). They’ve also extended their Saturday hours. I’m sure JT is ecstatic–that means that he doesn’t have to mail my packages for me any more. Of course winter is coming and I don’t get home until after 6pm many days during that season.

In any case, USPS has never made me so happy before.

Thank you, Andrew, for your offers to do away with my little terrorist. He is a beast in furry, fluffy kitty clothing. However we have come up with a solution to our strife! Dewey is now behaving himself because we threaten him nightly with the water bottle. It sits on our headboard staring him down. He rarely challenges it. Even better? He even is thinking twice about pawing us for attention. Last night, he was sitting next to JT looking for loving. He extended his paw shakily, Jeremy looked at him, and he backed down and put the paw back on the floor.

We have trained our little terrorist for the moment. He is once again king-kitty.

Last night was an evening of ANTM 5. I’m such a sucker for that show. There are plenty of fireworks this season with clashing personalities, egos, and morals. It’s all incredibly interesting. I love watching a good cat fight. Last night saw one of the gals eliminated. Coryn got the boot for looking and behaving “sad.” Her pics were consistently gorgeous, but I guess that’s not enough.

Anyway, here are a few photos:

Nicole (The Adorable):

Bre (The Bored):

Coryn (The Eliminated):

Dewey is a terrorist. He’s not a run-of-the-mill mild annoyance–he’s graduated into full-blown Jihad. Of course I’m pretty certain that my cat doesn’t have a religion (outside of a borderline fanatical dedication to food) but that doesn’t stop the fact that he is truly and completely a suicide bomber in fat cat’s skin waiting to crack.

It is easy to dismiss his intentions based on his innocent looking face, his sluggish movements, and his preoccupation with sleep. Don’t let those things obscure his severe case of cat-insanity. I’m really not sure what the real signals for terrorism are (if Bush were to have his way the only prerequisite would be a Middle Eastern background), but I’ll take a shot at it.

I’ve already mentioned his fanatical obsession with food–to that I must add that he requires a great deal of attention. When he does not get his requisite petting he begins to push. Considering he’s no small fry, the pushing is very noticable. I guess this goes in line with what a terrorist might do. He also likes to hide. He waits for the perfect opportunity to pounce on unsuspecting animate and inanimate objects. Dewey may as well have strapped a vest of dynamite on his body. Finally and most disturbingly he is incredible at spreading his own version of gospel. He pokes us, claw exposed, to get attention. Guess what? The other two little peons have started to do the same thing. Clearly Dewey is an influential personality.

Now, of course, on to the incident(s) that percipated my declaration that my cat is a terrorist. Dewey wants love, Dewey wants touching, Dewey doesn’t care what time of day it is. I’m accustomed to him bugging JT in the night. However, the big fat cat has now come up with a new plan. Instead of actually sleeping close to us, he is fixated on our window that is directly next to our bed. He sits atop either the headboard or the blanket chest. In either case, he then progresses to mew pitifully and scratch the trim and window (the glass part of course) incessantly. I’ve never, ever encountered something that so reeked of terrorist activity in my life. He has kept JT and I up all night for the past week with this insanity.

Dewey. Must. Die. Okay, not die, but SLEEP. We’ve tried to keep him awake all day. We’ve tried to give him more attention. We’ve tried to distract him with food just prior to going to bed. We’ve tried to shut the door. None of it works. Last night, JT got serious and filled up the water bottle. One squirt to Dewey’s rump and he disappeared for two whole hours. We may have found a solution.

Maybe that’s what Bush needs to do with his “terrorists.” He just needs an industrial sized water bottle. In the meantime, I’ll continue my anti-terrorism tests on my cat.

Here his is…plotting his revenge:

Driving through parts of Ann Arbor yesterday I noticed something incredible–gas for less than $2.60 a gallon. A year or two ago, I’d have thought that price to be outrageous but things have changed. One thing that’s really been left unchanged is the ridiculous price of gas in Brighton and Hartland (my home area). Right on M-59 (where I am usually forced to get gas for lack of any other option) it currently rests at $2.94 at Speedway of all joints. They are usually cheaper. I’m feeling VERY ripped off by it all.

There is some hope on the horizon. I saw a new story yesterday about something dubbed E85 which is an ethanol-based fuel that is biodegradable, 105 octane, and pollutant free. There are apparently a few stations in the Detroit area that already supply the alternative fuel–one in Dearborn Heights and one in Southfield. There are also stations in Dimondale (tiny town outside of Lansing) and Greenville that have E85. You can find out more about the alternative fuel and if your car is compliant here.

Neither the truck nor the Impala can take the new juice. That said there are tons of vehicles from as long ago as 1998 that can use the gas. It is cheaper (by 20 to 40 cents a gallon) and cleaner and some say more efficient. That site above also has a list of cars that car take E85. People are going to have to consider other fuel sources in the not too distant future. Oil is becoming too expensive and in places like Michigan where there is zero public transportation we have no other option than to drive (unless you live close enough to civilization to bike or walk).

Stress is the bane of my existence. I’m definitely a nervous personality and I’m great at tying my own belly up in knots. That said, I’m in a particularly stressful part of my life that I’m not willing to discuss for my own sanity. Suffice it to say I want this week and next week…and heck THIS YEAR to be over!

Oh well. As always, I make much more out of the difficult times than I should.

JT and I are busy trying to sell our deluxe 1992 Honda Accord LX in pink…errr…champagne. It’s hot, so if you want a really cool car that will make your neighbors jealous you can have it for the low low price of $2100. We spent yesterday afternoon cleaning it and waxing it and making it generally pretty. Wanna see? I know you do…just in case you are in the market for a efficient older car.

I also wanted to share a picture mostly for my sister’s benefit. I know she misses her American puppies now and again. Two weekends ago Annabelle was perfect little model.

What is up with all the stupid spammers? I’m getting so much crap (it’s been worse in the past though) offering me bondage instruments, shoes, mortgages (I’ve got a good one, thanks), prescription drugs, dirty pictures, and various other interesting items. Really folks–you’re just going to be deleted as soon as I find you (and I will find you much more quickly than Google will).

Today will be uneventful just like yesterday and tomorrow. The only good thing about this day is that it is Friday and I will then have two days sans work. I don’t really like having to wake up at 5:15am and not getting home until nearly 6pm. It makes me feel like I don’t have a life. I guess I really, honestly don’t. Why does work in Michigan have to go against the whole 9-5 rule? It really does suck.

So yeah. That’s it. How many times can I say I’m boring?

Today is ANTM day. You can’t possibly have forgotten already! I mean, it is season 5 and the girls have already brought drama in the form of hair cutting, crying, pouting, whining, and lesbian lust. It’s all good in the ANTM 5 house. Last week was a good time as always. The girls got their makeovers and got assigned new personalities. Ms. pageant princess Cassandra had the biggest makeover meltdown in America’s Next Top Model history. She went from having long brown locks to having short blonde ones. I’ve never seen such a fit over nothing. I mean come on folks–listen to Jay. Hair grows back.

Following that fun, the girls also had a lovely high fashion photo shoot (a rarity on ANTM). Prior to tonight’s show I figured I’d show the best, worst, and eliminated girl’s pictures. Oh yes, and how could I forget Cassandra’s hilarious freak out session.

Cassandra (with Sarah) before:

Cassandra after (and she does look much more striking):

Best Photo (Nik):

Worst Photo (Diane who looks like a middle-aged school marm):

Elminated Girl (Ebony):

The leaves are falling along with the temperatures (save for today which is supposed to be in the 80s I think)–October is here! I know ya’ll with but one real season are jealous that Michigan gets all four for a few months each.

So far this October has been a good one. Hopefully next year and next summer will be even better. And because I’m out of good/important/useful things to say I give you a photo from my backyard: