Christmas - Happy Birthday Jesus!

Merry Christmas!

Today is Christmas. It's been a tough week or two for most of the US, including my neighborhood because of how bad or maybe that should be how odd the weather's been. Snow, lots of the snow. Rain and therefore ice. We are currently at 14 degrees F and yet Friday it's supposed to be in the low 40s. My head is spinning. I don't mind a thaw, but i'd prefer it last at least a week, not twelve hours at a time.

I drive 25 miles to and from work. Last night i drove about 30 mph the whole way. I prayed a lot too, reminding myself and God that it was up to Him to get me home safely. He graciously did.

Walking the dogs in this kind of weather provides quite a few challenges as well. I have good boots and last year even purchased the terrific STABILicers (cleats) from www.32north.com. But sometimes, even that isn't enough. Last year i fell four times i think, two of the times were in my own driveway. lol. The other two times were within a quarter mile of each other on the same walk. Both were on ice like glass... nothing helps on that stuff except having ice skates. The second time i fell that day, Buddy, trying to be helpful, stood on my chest and licked my face. I just laughed.

I didn't do much for Christmas. I put lights up outside, but I never did get my Christmas tree set up. I gave the dogs some special food today, but i didn't get any of the pets gifts. I did wish them all a Merry Christmas, which probably sounds a bit odd, unless you have pets. I did go to two Christmas concerts. One was the Messiah put on by the local music society. The other was a Boars Head Festival. It was the first time that i attended one. It was beautiful.

I pray you all have a wonderful 2009!

Charlie the cat, update

Charlie the cat hadn't been feeling well for a while. Jennie and i agreed to take him to the vet on Sat Dec 20th. Unfortunately, Charlie didn't make it. Jennie called me about 1:30am Saturday to tell me he was gone. sigh. Even tho' Jennie has had Charlie for the last two years, it still hurts to lose a pet. sigh.

It's still autumn but you wouldn't know it

Monday Dec 8th we had a winter storm that lasted til 1am Wednesday morning. How do i know that's when it ended? Because the weather forecast said it would end then and i was outside on Wednesday at 1 am watching the sky clear as i shoveled snow. Working 2nd shift provides an interesting perspective on life and the world sometimes.

We received about ten inches of snow over the course of the storm. Sixty miles south of us had rain rather than snow. It was an odd storm system. I suspect that the ice storm that the Northeast was hit with yesterday and today is our storm after it moved east.

Wednesday after sunrise, k it was really close to noon, but since it was after i'd woken for the day, it's still "morning" for me... I took these pictures while i walked the dogs. I hope you enjoy them.

Yeah, we really do drive through 10 inches of snow before the plows go through. Life has to continue. The kids did get two days off of school tho'.


I think it's funny that the snow stuck to the tops of the berries on this tree.





My friend in Arizona told me on Tuesday that it was raining and 40 there and said, i bet you want to be in Phoenix. I told her, i've never liked 40 and rain, so no, actually, i'd take this over that any day. No, i don't like driving on the slushy, slick roads, but still...

Car Maintenance Update

It's been two weeks since the mechanic said he had resolved the oil leak in my car. I checked my oil and lo and behold, it hadn't dropped even a millimeter. PtL!!! I cannot tell you how excited I am that this issue is resolved.

Cats, cats, and more cats - postscript

If you actually read through the last three blog entries and kept track, you're probably thinking to yourself, "Christina should have six cats.". Yes, I should, however, in January 2007, Charlie's original owner asked if he could come for a visit. Since that had been part of the original agreement, it wasn't a problem at all. Jennie assured me that I could have him back after the weekend. I reassured her that if after the weekend she decided she wanted Charlie back permanently, that was okay too. I can't imagine having to give up a pet that i've had for ten years. That's how long Jennie had had Charlie.

Jennie kept Charlie.

Charlie, i think, was personally ecstatic to be home.

And that really does leave five cats.

Cats, cats, and more cats - Part 3

Wiggins and Me

Sometime in June 2006 i also brought back home two of Wiggins' original kittens. One family had adopted the two boys and it just didn't work out. They discovered they are allergic to cats.

I named the boys Josiah and Lancelot. Josiah was more than a little skittish. A friend and I prayed for him and he settled down. Lancelot was a lover from day one. His biggest offense was liking to like my nose while i slept. ack! Not a nice way to wake up.

Josiah and Lancelot were fighting a bit more agressively than i was comfortable with one day. Lancelot was pummeling Josiah. I decided to pull them apart. Josiah thanked me by biting me full on all four "canines". Off to the doctor for more antibiotics for me. Later that evening i was sitting on the kitchen floor and Josiah did it again. I was so sad because i knew i had to have him put down. The next day, I took him to animal control and they put in him isolation for ten days. I was at the grocery store a few days later and met a woman in the pet department who had something like six dogs and six cats. I told her what Josiah had done. She said, he'll be fine, bring him home. The next day i went to animal control and signed the papers to have Josiah released back into my care. All the way home I thought "what am i doing???" ya know what? He's a wonderful cat. Best decision ever! He calls to me from various rooms in the house and that's my cue to go pick him up and pet him. He's not as loving as Lancelot, but i don't think any cat could ever be. Josiah has his own personality. Oh and he's the alpha cat.

Rocky. I missed him so much. I spent over five months going to the local animal control hoping someone turned him in to them. Instead, as previously mentioned, I met Esther the Wonder dog. I tried to find an adoptive home for her. When I got desperate I adopted her on June 20, 2006. I thought I'd find a permanent home for her eventually. Then my vet told me she had heart worm and i knew that i wouldn't be able to give her up after eight months of treatment. Esther is beautiful, intelligent, sweet, fun, strong and my first dog.

October 2006 I was still going to animal control regularly to look for Rocky. I didn't find Rocky, instead, I again came home with a dog - six month old Buddy, the long-nosed orange dog. He is fun, loving, smart, and cute as a bug's ear.

Sometime during the summer or early fall, a stray cat made my acquaintance. I was sitting on the back step late one night and he came up and rubbed against me. He's black and white. I thought he was the neighbor's cat, so i didn't mind petting him. The next day I asked another neighbor about it and they said, no that's just a stray. The stray decided to come in my house about a week later, but when he was about to come in, he bolted. I didn't see him again for a long time.

A few weeks later Sarah, from my Bible Study group, mentioned they had a stray cat in their garage. She knew i liked cats and asked if i wanted it? I asked her more about the cat and it was a black and white cat they had been feeding off and on all summer. They already had one cat and said they couldn't have another one. I went to meet the cat and it was "my" black and white cat! I agreed to take the cat. I named him Checkers because of the color pattern around his mouth. I may post his picture eventually so you can see it.

Checker's adorable. However, he's a mite feisty. He loves sitting in my lap, but didn't always like to be petted. I'd have to stay on guard for when he decided he'd had had enough, whip his head around and try to bite me. I've now had him for two years. He still loves to sit in my lap and is much more patient with being petted. He even seems to enjoy it. I still have to use gloves, lots of treats, and a pillow to protect my lap when i clip his claws.

I've promised myself not to adopt any other cats or dogs, unless Rocky returns. The door is always open for Rocky. And yes, i have finally stopped visiting animal control looking for him. Actually, i stopped visiting regularly around the time i brought Buddy home because i realized i'd want to bring them all home with me. I have successfully fostered two additional kittens. I had them at separate times. But I didn't keep either of them longer than two weeks. phew.

That brings the total of cats to five and an end to this incredibly long story.

Cats, cats, and more cats - Part 2

Charlie, photo by Jennie

January 2006, I adopted a friend's 19 lb orange tabby because she was recently diagnosed as being allergic to Charlie. Charlie liked to hide. Or maybe he didn't like his new home. His favorite place to hide was in the front of the washer. Again i say, "who knew?"

Mid-January, Boo was sick again. The vet thought the previous illness was back. Sadly, it wasn't. This time it was FIP, wet form, which is fatal. I kept her as comfortable as possible and finally made the difficult decision to have her put down. February 14th was her last day. The vet was very nice about it and let me hold her during it.

I told a co-worker that i was back to having two cats. She said until you're adopted. Noooo... don't say that!

Early March i had told a friend i would adopt her cat if she decided she wanted to give him up. His name was Rocky and he was a handful.

Very close to St. Patrick's day I was walking in the neighborhood and and asked a neighbor about a black kitten that was walking close to his house. He said it followed the neighbor girl home from school the day before. As soon as i asked him about the kitten, she made a ninety degree turn and came right at me. Silly me picked her up, saw she was in need of vet care because of her ears. I ran her over to the vet; got her started on her vaccinations and basic care; took her home; talked to the family who's daughter the cat had followed home; they didn't want her; but i kept the name they gave her -- Blue.

I had officially been adopted by a 4.75 lb "adult" black polydactyl cat that growled like a panther in a movie. It was so funny to see her growl at Charlie, the 19 lb tabby, and see him run. I told Charlie he could sit on her and that would take care of it, but he wouldn't listen. Probably a good thing. I decided that Blue was probably closer to 7 months than 12 because she still "loped" like a kitten when she ran. She is now a very healthy seven pound cat.

Four days after Blue adopted me, my friend called and asked me to come get Rocky. ack! Four cats!!!????!!! What was i thinking! I went and got him.

Rocky had some emotional issues. He went into serious hiding, not even coming out to eat or drink. I tried and tried to get him out of his hiding place. In desperation, i called my absolutely fabulous vet, who came over and helped me get him into a carrier. Honestly, I did nothing but stand by waiting nervously while she went in after him. She also provided me a dog crate she wasn't using. I set it up all cozy for Rocky and put him in the dog crate.

I gently worked with him, going in to clean his litter, giving him fresh water & food and trying to pet him. Touching him could be very detrimental to one's health i found out quickly. Eventually, he'd let me pet him. He loved to sit in my lap but didn't like me getting up and would slash at me if i tried. He would also rub his check against mine while he growled. eeks! Friends were amazed when they would see me let him do it. I told him that was his version of a purr. He did finally start to truly purr. I was so excited. However, he also would get attacked by Charlie. Charlie had no front claws. Rocky was fully loaded. Didn't matter, Charlie would bite Rocky on his rump and a while later there would be a boil bursting. ick. Off to the vet we'd go. Unfortunately, the first time i had to get Rocky in a cat carrier after he had full run of the house I did NOT follow my vet's example and ended up with my hands completely torn up. A couple of days after taking Rocky to the vet to clean up his wound and getting him started on antibiotics, I took myself to the emergency room to have my own wounds cleaned and get my own antibiotics. Quite the bonding moment. k, maybe not. Oh, and I think i had to get a tetanus booster that time. If i didn't get the booster then it was because i'd received one in the previous few months because of the other cats.

In May i decided to let Rocky have a some more freedom and let him outside a few times, even though i knew better. The third time out, he gave me this look like "i hate you" and i never saw him again. I was so sad.

I looked for him for years. Even after i knew it was foolishness.

Cats, cats, and more cats - Part 1

Wiggins' kittens

I had a cat when i first moved out on my own years and years and years ago. His name was Mazda. He has his own story, but the part he played in my current crop of cats is very simple. I decided after finding him a new home i would never ever have another cat. Cat's cost too much. They leave hair everywhere. It's a hassle when you want to go on vacation. I could continue with the reasons, but that's enough for now.

Fourteen years later I joined a group of people who were going to Mississippi to help with Hurricane Katrina relief. The leaders wanted to help the people in Mississippi, but they also wanted to rescue dogs and cats if they came across any.

great. wonderful. you do that. was my unspoken response. I was not going to help with either cats or dogs. definitely not dogs. I was not a dog person.

yeah, I'm sure you can guess what happened... they found two cute kittens, both about five months old. One was a beautiful black and beige tabby. The other was plain old black. I knew it was better to have two cats than just one, so i told them I'd take them both. The leader then told me that the tabby was pregnant. sigh. I told her i really liked the tabby better. She said the black was nicer. yeah. whatever.

When we returned home, i gave them baths. She was right, the black one was an absolute doll. Sweet as could be. The tabby was feisty. When i tried to give her a bath, she whipped her back legs towards her belly, over her head and did her best to scratch the living daylights out of my arm and hand, without success.

The tabby was named Wiggins and the black cat was Booboo or Boo.

I took them to the vet. The vet confirmed Wiggins' pregnancy. I was really hoping it would just be an intestinal issue. sigh.

Wiggins kept being testy toward me and Boo. I kept reminding myself she's pregnant. Who knew cats can be hormonal.

Boo got deathly ill about a month later. My vet checked her out and recommended taking her to the nearest vet college. They saved her, but barely, and i found myself much poorer.

The day after i brought Boo home, Wiggins went into labor and had four slime-balls, oops, make that four kittens. The picture at the top of this post attests to their utter cuteness. (photo complements of Yudha)

Wiggins was a good if cautious mother. Boo took up the slack and taught the kittens the finer points of playing, fighting and generally enjoying being a cat.

Two months later, i had found homes for all four of the kittens. That was December.

for Kris

Kris, the following post is for you - "Look! a kitty!"

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving.

gobble gobble

Food. Friends. Family. Football.

gobble gobble

I really didn't mean to do alliteration.

gobble gobble

This blogging is good for me. I just found out that i didn't know how to spell alliteration. It's also good for my co-worker. He didn't know what alliteration was. Now he does.

I suspect you've already guessed that i don't have a lot to say about Thanksgiving. I like it. I like seeing family and friends and eating turkey and all the trimmings. Mom still does the cooking. go Mom! That means that the trimmings change each year. We've had some interesting meals.

However, I'm frustrated that Thanksgiving seems to be getting lost between Halloween and Christmas. I'm not alone on this. I was listening to Andy Rooney from 60 Minutes, on Sunday say something similar. His theory is that it gets lost in all the Christmas hype because there's no money to be made on Thanksgiving. Some of my neighbors already have their Christmas lights up. I did set up my plug that i'll be using for my outdoor Christmas lights, but i haven't even looked for them yet. I know they're in the basement somewhere, but not entirely sure where, partly because i didn't put them out last year.

Anyway, I hope you all have a very blessed Thanksgiving Day. May you have all sorts of wonderful things to be thankful for this year and next too.

Friends

Family

Love and hugs to share

Smiles of joy

Music in your heart and soul

Car Maintenance

I took my car in for a tune-up and lots of maintenance. I needed my catalytic converter replaced and a lot of the various lightbulbs had burnt out. I mentioned my ongoing issue with a mystery oil leak. I've had the leak for about two years old and they hadn't found out the problem yet. I also decided i should have a new battery since mine was seven years old, yikes!

I was surprised and pleased to hear that the found the source of the oil leak. Ummm, k, i was jumping up and down and praising the Lord when they told me. It was the seal on the head gasket. Oil was filling one of the sparkplug compartments. They replaced the seal and changed my oil. I am so looking forward to checking my oil in two weeks to see that it "didn't" change! I'm also looking forward to checking my gas mileage which should go up from my usual 31 mpg. :-D

Nothing special

I really don't have a lot to talk about tonight, but can't seem to see how to cancel this post.

Well actually, I've mentioned my cats a few times and i probably should properly introduce them. They are, after all, the reason i have dogs.

I think i'll wait 'til tomorrow.

Good Buddy!

Woohoo!!! Sunday night i clipped all of Buddy's front nails. It was a first for me. Clipping my dogs' nails makes me nervous, especially since Esther does not like her paws handled. But anyone who knows Buddy would laugh. He's the nicest dog. Everyone who has ever tried to clip his nails has been able to do it no problem. I was so excited that i finally did it.

Drum roll please...
Monday night i was so upset at the dogs because they chased Josiah, the cat, again! I ordered both dogs into the bedroom, told them to sit, and to stay. I left the bedroom to find Josiah and make sure he still had all his parts intact. He did. phew.

I turned around and there was Esther. Honestly, I'm not too surprised, she doesn't like to be left behind. Then I went back to the bedroom and there was Buddy sitting where i had left him, staying as i had asked him. I was ecstatic!

Ah some of the small things in life bring the biggest smiles.

Buddy, My Long-nosed Orange Dog

Four months after getting Esther, i was still visiting animal control looking for my missing cat, Rocky. I kept going past one of the kennels that had this adorable long-nosed orange dog in it. Every time i'd walk past his kennel i'd tell him he'd be adopted because he was soooo incredibly cute.

I was working third shift at the time and having a hard time with the whole wake-work cycle. One day i desperately had to get home to get some sleep because it was getting late, but i'd wanted to stop by animal control to check for Rocky. I thought, I'll just check online tonight. But i distinctly sensed the Lord directing me to go to animal control - right then. As the speaker this past Sunday at church said, you know when it's the Lord speaking. You can pray, fast, wait on the Lord, but it's not going to change. :-) So, off to animal control I went.

I walked in and saw the long-nosed orange dog on a leash. The leash was held by a woman. I said "oh he's adopted!!!" She and the officer assured me he hadn't been. She adopted him the day before, but then told her husband, who was out of town, and he put his foot down. Now Buddy was back at animal control. I agreed to take Buddy, she agreed to pay for his neutering.

I thought i was taking him to find him his "forever home". But two days later, I told a friend of mine that i had this dog i was fostering; showed her his picture and she said, "yep that's him". I said what do you mean? She said, God showed me you were going to have a second dog before he told you and that's him. I said, I knew i was getting a second dog, but God didn't show me what he looked like. "Well that's him", she proclaimed again.

It's been a very good thing that God was so clear about me taking Buddy. He was six months old when i got him and quite the chewer. He has gotten past that, although my house is still recovering. He's also had some medical issues that are ongoing and there are some days I just want to ask why. Ok, there are some days i do ask why. But then i remember, smile, and thank God Almighty for my long-nosed orange dog named Buddy.

Esther, the Wonder Dog

This is my first dog ever, ok, as an adult. We had one that i remember when i was a kid, but I have very few memories of her.

Back to Esther. I got her from the local animal control while i was going there looking for my run away cat, Rocky. I never got Rocky back, but came home instead with a 58 lb dog. She looked smaller in the kennel at animal control than she did in my living room.

She is definitely a mix or as i like to say "an unintentional designer dog". She has one blue eye and one brown eye, so most people say she is a husky mix. But I remind them that Australian Shepherds and Border Collies also can have mixed eye color. Yesterday I saw a French Bulldog with one blue and one brown eye. She has a bit of white on her neck, chest, belly, the tip of her tail and her toes. She also has black spots on her toes and a bit of dark brown on one of her legs and one of her flanks. I can only see it in the sun. Her fur is amazingly soft! I love petting her, which makes disciplining her difficult. She is incredibly smart too. All of this has lead me to believe that she is Lab , Australian Shepherd mix.

I have had her for 2 years and in December she will be 4 yrs old. She had heartworm when i got her so i had her treated. I'm glad i did. She is wonderful and has added sooooo much to my life.

Historic week, as we all know

This week, as we all know, has been historic. It was a landslide victory for our first African American president. As i thought about this historic moment, i realized that in God's eyes every day is historic. Just because we humans don't remember what happened, doesn't mean He doesn't. In fact, He remembers them all.

I love the fact that He remembers all our prayers that we have ever prayed or that have ever been prayed over us.

"... the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." Revelation 5:8, NIV

My blog's title

I suspect at some point in the future i'll be asked why did i choose "Christina Friendly" as my blog title. I also suspect that by the time i'm asked this question it will be so far in the future that the person will probably not have read back to the beginning of my blog. But i'll know it's here and come back, grab this post and re-post it.

Here's the deal, at work i believe that we should all be and act professionally so i tend to be a bit vocal as to what is and isn't appropriate, mostly regarding speech. This has a bit to do with the kind of work i do. I work in a call center and our customers can sometimes overhear our coworkers, so keeping our conversations professional is helpful. However, this has evolved into discussions about movies, sites, photos, and music that my coworkers listen to as well. The refrain can often be heard: "Is it Christina Friendly?" Or as Chris R said to Jeff C yesterday in my hearing, "This book that i'm reading is definitely not Christina-friendly." Later in the day i discussed with them what i should i name my blog and Neil S jokingly responded "Christina Friendly" and my blog was born.

In the beginning...

When i was about 11 i purchased a diary. I thought how cool is this... i'll write every day about all the exciting things that happen to me. I think it took me about 3 days to get bored with that idea. Mainly because i had a very uneventful life at the time. Well.... we will see how long it takes me to get bored with the modern day version of diary keeping. Hopefully never. Then again, maybe we should see how long it takes me to forget my login or password. That probably will happen first. lol.