Things I Did Not Know

+I actually really liked Killing Jesus on Nat Geo. It was more historical and sort of glided over the heavy religious stuff. I flipped through a copy of the book and hated it, so nice work to the folks who made that.

+That when you are in a hospital waiting room and they are out of rooms, they might have to treat people in the waiting room. This poor girl was really hyperventilating. Poor thing. It was the definition of awkward and I'm just thinking help her already. I just buried my nose in my vampire apocalypse novel and wished her well.

+That cats can eat potatoes. Dr. Wu's hard food is made of chicken and potatoes. I had gotten a cheeseburger with fries at Duchess and he was sniffing them. I crushed a bit up and he ate it and liked it. Who knew?

+The good doctor knocked his nail clippers to the floor and they broke, the little bastard. I had to get new ones at the food market. This will go down on his permanent record as an open act of sabotage. 

Pnuemonia Sucks

Okay, today I feel like I have pneumonia. Luckily, the Caps are playing the Rangers at 3:00 in a huge game as we dwindle down to the end of the regular season. The Second Season starts mid-April. 

I am currently reading The Passage by Justin Cronin. It's dark as hell. Black as a lawyer's heart. It's a trilogy about a vampire virus apocalypse caused by the US government (aren't they all?) But it's very unique. The first book is a monster at 800 pages but so far I am dying to see where it goes.

I'm looking forward to watching Bill O'Reilly's Killing Jesus, mostly so I can shout at the tv and rail about all of the historical and biblical inaccuracies. His next book should be called Bill O'Reily's Killing History. O'Reilly is a hack and a liar. He claims that Lee Harvey Oswald was the single gunman. Anyone with eyeballs can see that's not true.

A) Three of the best marksman in the world did a simulation at the same distance with the same bolt action rifle. They could not get off 3 shots in the same amount of time Harvey allegedly did.
B) The ballistics of the 'magic bullet' that zag-zagged and turned in side Kennedy. What a crock.
C) The exit wound is where you see the damage. If Kennedy had been shot from behind, it would have been the front of his head that showed the damage.

So..., I know more than Bill O'Reilly. That and a cup of of coffee would net me..., a cup of coffee.

Okay, got to get some food. Meat would be best as I should stay away from dairy. Luckily for me, I live with a doctor.

Surprisingly, Free Fallin' Even Further

The harder they come 
The harder they fall
One and all
-Jimmy Cliff

Bloody bleeding hell. I've been under the well for quite a spell. I went to the walk-in clinic and I have walking pneumonia. WTF?

Dr. Garcia gave me antibiotics, prednisone and cough syrup with codeine. She asked me if I wanted a Dr.'s note to miss work. I told her I went to work yesterday. "Really?" she asked.

So I'm home on the coach, watching the Mets vs. Washington. Doctors orders.

If it wasn't for bad luck
I wouldn't have no luck at all
-Cream

Free Fallin'

This is unbelievable. 

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The mystery of Portland's pink chickens is solved.

Multnomah County Animal Services says the birds' owner told the agency he used food coloring, beet juice and Kool-Aid to dye the two birds, then released them to "make people smile."

Owner Bruce Whitman of Portland says the prank succeeded beyond his wildest hopes. In his words, "I didn't expect to get this many people to smile."

Apparently, many people did not realize that the chickens had been dyed. What did they think happened? It was an Easter Miracle?

In other ridiculous news, Ted Cruz is running for President. Did anyone not know that? The only truly amazing thing is that Cruz is the first Hispanic senator ever elected in Texas. 

Hispanic[edit]   (From Wikipedia)

As of 2010, 45% of Texas residents had Hispanic ancestry; these include recent immigrants from Mexico, Central America, and South America, as well as Tejanos, whose ancestors have lived in Texas as early as the 1700s. 

45%!? And he's the first Hispanic senator ever??? This asshole?

And lastly; Memo to Indiana - Fuck You. My friend Laura posted "Boycott Indiana!" on Facebook. Too late, my dear. I've been boycotting it ever since I drove through it on Route 64 in 2001. Businesses in Indiana can now refuse to serve people that they believe to be gay because of religious reasons. Detractors of the legislation fear it will hurt tourism. Tourism? Really? With the exception of the Indianapolis 500 and the Final Four, I have never heard of anyone going to Indiana for tourism. I see even less reason for gay couples to choose Indiana as a vacation spot (it is NOT on my sister's wish list.) Note: BusinessInsider.com ranks Indiana's economy as 33rd.

Now I'm free

Free Fallin'

-Tom Petty

Melon Day

Today we went out to lunch at work because LogicMelon started 5 years ago. Hoorah!

New shows I love; 

The Unbreakable Kimmy Schimdt (Netflix.) Tina Fey co-wrote it and it's side splitting funny.

Better Call Saul, the Breaking Bad spin-off. Bob Odenkirk and Jonathan Banks are tremendous in this.

Books I recently read and were awesome; 

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson. Reminded me of a Hitchcock film. It twists and turns and is dark as hell. 

The 100 series by Kass Morgan. 

FOG

John Carpenter's The Fog (1980) 

The fog was so thick this morning that it was like a curtain. The shoulders of Route 8 were thick and white. The fog was pretty thick on the way home as well. It was 55 F, which explains the fog. At least there weren't any 100 year old ghosts of lepers, seeking revenge for their murder. That's about the best thing I can say about this winter. The Winter of '15 will long be remembered as a brutal one.

Doctor Drinks the Kool Aid

Well, last night Dr. Wu was in for a big surprise. I got a catnip plant for him. Sometimes he seems to get a little high out of it, but infrequently. It’s on the table, so he can have some if he so desires. It looked a bit dry, so I watered it. The container has holes in the bottom, so I keep it on a saucer. The water started to pool and doctor goes up and starts drinking it. I thought it odd, as he has two bowls of fresh water, but no harm done. And then it hit me – the water must have catnip in it.

And about 5 minutes later, it hit the Doctor. It was 11:30 PM. He was running around like a crazy person. I went to bed and left him to his own psychotic devices. There was a lot of banging, jumping, and ‘chirping,’ the noise he makes when playing and stalking. He eventually came down and I woke up with him tangled in the covers. As he ate his breakfast, he looked no worse for the wear. It’s good to be a kitten.

Our Internet has been down for the last 15 minutes. No phones either (VOIP.) We can’t do shit. We think it’s Comcast’s problem. The Information age is great until the technology stops working. Then you are boned. And there’s no phone number on the website. WELCOME TO AMERICA: Population you! Deal with it. And the dollar slips another five cents against the British Pound.

I can’t even do data entry because I have to check that no one else has that account and the CRM is in the Cloud.

It’s sunny today and supposed to get up to 45 F. Tomorrow it will be 55 F and rainy. Darren just called and Comcast said they hope to have the Internet up by 2:10 PM. WTF? Now I wish I had some catnip.

Madrid Reunion

Calle Gran Via, Madrid

American Laura, my good friend from Madrid, was in NYC for her sister's graduation from medical school. So I got to see her and Carolyn. We hung out at Carolyn's place in Harlem and had a great time. It's always odd to see people you knew in Madrid, here in the States. It's like, Wow! You exist in North America as well. Who would have guessed?

Work is good. It's been windy and cold. I need this winter to end. Now! 

Janet went home yesterday and is doing as well as can be expected. The animals were happy to have her back.

Dr. Wu is doing well. He learns new things every day. He's really learning to jump from chairs to sofas, etc. Pretty soon he'll practically be flying.

I Have the Touch

The Internet is back up! And now I'm off to  NYC to see American Laura from Spain!

Fire in the Hole

In the valley of shadowless death

they pray for thunder clouds and rain

but to the multitude who stand in the rain

heaven is where the sun the sun shines

The grass will be greener

til the stems turn to  brown

and thoughts will fly higher

til the earth brings them down

Forever caught in desert lands

one has to learn to disbelieve the sea

-Genesis, Mad Man Moon

March 19

It's been a hell of a week. However, the most important thing to happen this week, my sister outlaw's back operation, at least initially, has been a success. They are giving her MRI's and all sorts of tests today. She was in surgery for more than seven hours.

Back to me

On Saturday, I got four news tires put on the Toyota. Needless to say, I was beyond surpised when the front driver's side tire blew out while I was coming home on route 8. The tire had less than 300 miles on it.

Jan was still in surgery, so I called my sister to let her know I was fine. A tow truck came about an hour later (he was looking for me on 8 north, when I had clearly told the lady I was on 8 south.) We towed it to my mechanic and then he gave me a ride up the hill to my house.

So I called my boss to tell him I wouldn't be in today (I want them to scrutnize the other three tires, because there sure as hell was a defect in the one that blew.) The tire was reduced to two pieces. The treads completely blew off from the walls of the tires.

So I had to take the day off. Normally, I could work from home, but I have no cable or Internet. In September, AT&T switched to Frontier (without them telling us) and they have been horrible. On Monday, they turned me off for being 60 days past due (which I was not, and have a paper trail to prove it.) They then tried to charge me an extra $150 to turn it back on, at which point I told them to go fuck themselves several times over and without the benefit of lubrication. Henceforth, I cannot work from home because I will not have Xfinity until Saturday morning. But other than that, things are awesome.

It's my life, your world

-Tom Petty

So, I spend the evenings reading aloud to the Doctor. I just read the first two books in Kass Morgan's The 100, about mankind trying to return to earth 97 years after a nuclear war and a global pandemic. They had previously been living in a space station above the earth, but life support is finally failing. They were both great and I just started the third book.

The 100 is also a TV series on the CW. It differs quite a bit, but it's awesome as well. They just wrapped up season 2 a week or so ago.

So, I have the day off. Good thing, because I am knackered. Doctor Wu has been stalking things for two hours, running around like a maniac, pausing to chew my fingers and try to nip my nose, and then he's gone again.

He's so small that he can't jump that high, so I am training him to use and tables and the like so that he can get to his scratching post by the bay window. It provides a stunning view of the Naugatuk Valley. And sometimes he scratces the furniture or jumps onto a table or shelf where he doesn't belongs. If he doesn't respond to my voice after three tries, then he get a call from the water pistol, or as I like to call it; the Pointed Nails of Justice.

Doc just jumped in my lap. It's only 12:30, but I need a nap. My eyes are flickering and darkness is falling over me like a blanket on a cage. Is it really only Thursday?

- - -

Spank my ass and call me Gwen! I slept til 15:00! Then I found out that my axle had broken and that was what killed the tire. They warranteed the tire and it cost $200 for a new axle. But I have my car back and can go to work tomorrow.

Jan is in pain but walking around. Her family drove from PA and upstate NY to see her.

- - -

Mel just texted to say that they are going to go back in to fix a screw or something that must be pressing on something. As janet has numbness in one of her heels. The wounds have not healed yet, so they say it will be pretty routine. At least they are being thorough.

For here am I sitting in a tin can

Far above the world

Planet Earth is blue

And there's nothing I can do

-David Bowie

 Friday March 20th

It's the first day of Spring, but you wouldn't know it because we are due to get more snow. Mel told me last night or I wouldn't have known. Not having Internet at the house is like living on the Island from lost.

I Got Your Back

Well, today is the day that Janet, my sister-out-law, gets her back surgery. She was suppose to have in in Dec, 2013, but the insurance tried their usual bullshit and denied it. Jan works as an x-ray tech and the doctors where she works have look at her x-rays and can't believe she can still walk. But finally, last week, the surgery was approved. So, sending you all the good karma I have, Jan. Hang in there. I got your back. 

A Farewell to Things

they tried to fight him
just couldn't beat him
this manic depressive
who walks in the rain
-Rush

a farewell to snow

The snow is finally starting to melt. It's rainy today and I had to walk down into town to get my car, which needed new tires. A lot has melted since I walked down a week ago. So I was walking in the rain, which is way better than more snow.

a farewell to clutter

This is week three of intensive house cleaning. I wanted to keep things open and easy to clean for when the good Doctor starts to shed. He's only 3.5 months old.

a farewell to old friends

When they emailed me Doctor Wu's records, I was surprised to see that they did have a birth date for him. He was born in Metaraire, Louisiana on November 27th, 2014. 

I almost fell over when I read it. My dear buddy and last cat, Fripp, died on November 27th, 2011. 

That's a pretty trippy coincidence. Alas, Doctor Wu and I were destined to be together.

Talking my ear off

I went back to the Doctor
To get another shrink
And sit and tell him about my weekend
but he never betrays what he thinks
-The Who

Dr. Wu is settling in nicely. He very friendly and has now started to "chirp" when I come home from work. I got him a kitten color because the adult one was like an anchor around his neck. It was too big and even got in his way when he ate.

He's talking his little face off today. 

Doctorate

I'm getting closer to my home
_Grand Funk Railroad

Well, Dr. Wu and I have been together a week now. We both have signed the roommate agreement and are psyched to be together.

My family has a long lineage of loving cats. 

And starting revolutions.

Ukraine can you hear me calling?

Entitlement

It's Dr. Evil, I didn't spend six years in Evil Medical School to be called "mister," thank you very much.
-Dr. Evil Austin Powers

Dr. Wu is quite picky about his title. He claims he lost 3 of his 9 lives getting thru FMS (Feline medical school.) 


The good doctor met Kevin for the first time today. They hit it off well. Dr. Wu chased a few pipe cleaners around, begged me for even slightest tastes of beef bratwurst, which I denied, and then fell asleep.

Kevin left around 3pm and it's been a relaxing weekend. 

Hoth

Winter is nature's way of saying, 'Up yours.'

Robert Byrne

It took 5 hours to go 120 miles, round trip, and pick up Dr. Wu on Monday in the snow and freezing rain. He is doing fine. It's been 24 hours and he seems fairly adjusted. However, I forgot how much energy a kitten has. He just had breakfast and is running around the house. He loves to chase his toy mouse. And to play with a pipe cleaner.

I worked from home yesterday because it was his first day. I will again today because it's snowing like crazy. I was very scared during Monday's driving marathon. I do not want to go through that again and my boss is cool about it. I commute twice as far as my co-workers.

Winter will end someday. I swear it. It has to.

Delays

The mist crawls from the canal
Like some primordial phantom of romance
To curl, under a cascade of neon pollen
While I sit tied to the phone like an expectant father
Your carnation will rot in a vase.
-Marilion, Bitter Suite

Well, not unexpectedly, the Kitty Train, which left Louisiana on Friday, should finally be here tomorrow. I look forward to meeting the good Doctor.

Work is fine. House is clean. And warm. So delightfully warm. It's been a brutal winter.

Slash and Burn

It's snowing. It seems like every time I look out the window, it's snowing. It's like living in Narnia.

Smith came over yesterday and we moved my bedroom. That only took seven months to make that change. So my bedroom is sorted. Now I need clean my old bedroom. Slash and burn seems to be the only route to get it done. 

The house is transforming. The winds of change whistle through my flat. And the good Doctor will arrive mañana.