Happy Thanksgiving 2015

Another stuff-your-gut holiday has come and is fading. We had it pretty easy today since we did not travel and did not have to deal with family politics (except for a quick tussle between Murphy and Ixie).
Once again I turned my back on the typical Thanksgiving fare in favor of something less turkey based. I spent the afternoon creating a homemade loaf of bread and scratch made lasagna. I had a lot of fun, and I knew exactly what when into the meal.
This Thanksgiving I am thankful for my husband, my home, having food in the fridge, and clothes on my back. I am also thankful for my family, friends, and my feline pals. I am thankful to live in an awesome country, and for the men and women who protect us. I am also thankful for my health. 
I recently had a funny health "scare". It wasn't outright terrifying, but rather a tad worrisome. I had a funny extra sliver of nail growing under one of my nails on my left hand. It had been there literally over a decade. All was well until the main nail quit growing normally and started to break all the time. I finally got so annoyed I saw my doctor. She referred me to a dermatologist who knew what it was. The shocker was this sort of thing is normally cancerous. The good news was I'd had it so long, the likelihood of it being cancer was pretty slim (since I was still alive). However, just to be sure, they recommended a biopsy. Long story short, they numbed my finger and removed the whole nail. They took a piece of flesh from the nail bed and sent it away for a check. A week later I had the good news: it was NOT cancerous. Now I just had to take care of the nail as it healed and a fresh nail grew out. It reminded me how important good health is.
Hopefully you have plenty to give thanks for this year. I know I do.

These turkeys are thankful they live in New England where it is safer

Kittens are great, but...

Neo is my lovable old man at the ripe old kitty age of 14. Ixie is my absolute most adorable kitty ever. This past summer, a new cat came into my life, quite by chance. 
My husband and I found our house in the winter, closed on it a few weeks later, and moved in during very early spring. Neo and Ixie, were right there with us. They were probably hoping this was it for a while. To be honest, the human members of the household were also tired of moving. As we settled into the house, cold and snow reluctantly gave way to spring. Then summer finally started making an appearance.
In June, I was filling our bird feeders (with Ixie supervising), and I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye. I noticed a black cat making his way toward me. "Hmmm, that's odd. None of the other neighborhood cats are this friendly." This little guy came right up to me, mewed in heart-melting fashion, and proceeded to rub against my leg. I petted the visitor, not thinking much of it. We had at least two "transient" cats that came through our yard on a pretty regular basis. I figured this was transient number three.
I finished with the bird feeders and Ixie walked with me toward the door. Then came the new cat! He seemed determined to come in too. Ixie wasn't thrilled...she wheeled around and hissed. It was enough to buy me and her time to get into the house w/out the other cat. I am wary of strange cats since I don't know if they are healthy, and I won't put my resident cats at risk for disease, even though they are vaccinated. I noticed the poor fella was standing on the window AC unit, desperate to get my attention.
I filled a bowl with water, and found some cat treats Ixie didn't care for. I took both outside for the visitor, and he nearly drowned himself getting a drink. As for the treats, I don't think he chewed them - down the hatch they went instantly. Then he looked to me for more. That's when I started to wonder if this cat was a neighborhood wanderer or something sadder: a homeless housecat. 

How could I refuse a face like this?

I told my husband about him, and he met the newcomer when he arrived home. We both agreed that we needed to take him to the vet to see if he had a microchip. Perhaps someone had moved or their cat had escaped the confines of home and was lost. The vet scanned him and no chip. I made an appointment for the following day to get him a full checkup. They also gave me a rough assessment that was he was maybe 2 years old and generally in good health (no signs of disease in his coat, eyes, ears, or mouth). 
As I drove home, I pondered what to call our new cat. I have a very strong superstition about renaming any animal (hey, I'm Irish...superstition comes with the ancestry). In my past, any pet I renamed eventually died within a year or two. Since this cat came to me unnamed, I figured a name would come to me sooner or later. The next day his name came out of the blue: Murphy. 
Murphy has been with us ever since. As I fed and cared for him, he began to fill out and gain weight and muscle. The shy but affectionate stray cat in June became a 13lb miniature panther by early fall. He also proved he was deadly.  He wiped out an entire generation of new rabbits, two or three birds, and various other things that didn't have enough body parts to make a positive ID. Thank goodness he's a cat; otherwise the police would have arrested this prolific serial killer.

Murphy lies in wait for the chipmunk that lives in this hole

The interesting thing about Murphy is he's all grown up, but he's still young and energetic. I like to say I got a kitten for the price of a cat. What does that mean? Basically I have a kitten (tons of energy) tempered by the maturity of an adult cat. I don't have to worry that he'll go sticking his head in the mayo jar, chew up all the electrical cords, or lick paint off the walls. Don't get me wrong...kittens are TOTALLY cute. But for me, they are a hassle until they grow up to be mature, wiser adults. After we adopted Ixie a few years ago (she was 6 years old when we got her), I told myself that I will only adopt adult cats from now on. Everyone wants cute little kittens. The thing about kittens...they grow into cats. 
When you're looking for your next feline companion, think about adopting an adult cat. Let someone else "play" off the depreciation, and you'll have a wonderful, well-adjusted life-long friend.

Tiger lilies and a panther...life is good

A loving home makes for a peaceful kitty

 

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Apologies for planting that Christmas earbug in your brain. But I feel like this can be a wonderful time of the year. I was at the grocery store today for my weekly food shopping (it wasn't as bad as last week's trip). At checkout, they had a kit people could purchase for $10 that gave needy families all the trimmings for a Thanksgiving dinner. The families received the trimmings box for free and received a coupon for a turkey at a big discount. The clerk was so happy I bought one of the kits; she even said "Thank you and God bless you". I'm not a religious person (I am spiritual, but not religious), but I always appreciate any blessings I receive. Also, it was nice to hear "God bless you" in this day of political correctness gone amuck. I can use all the blessings I get!
For me, this time of the year is not about Black Friday sales, crazy door busters, or cramming too much food down my gut. I actually get annoyed trying to shop for normal stuff this time of year because I have to fight through crowds of people who are lost in a frenzy of shopping. I do all my necessary shopping early in the morning or later in the evening when the crowds are somewhat tamer. For me, this time of year means helping others when possible. My husband and I try to donate to Toys for Tots and food drives every year. I even donated blood last year around Christmas. I hope to do the same this year.  
As a child, I was lucky enough to have great Christmases filled with family, decorations, fun presents, and can't-wait-to-eat-another-bite food (I am a Southerner and had several awesome cooks in my family including my Mom, my Aunt Tootie, and my step-Granny; all three have passed on and I miss them). Since my family is down South and I currently live near Boston, I don't travel to see family at Thanksgiving or Christmas. This has been the case every year since I moved to Seattle in 1999 (the last time I gathered with family for Thanksgiving and Christmas was 1998). Also, I have significantly less family than I did a decade ago, and they are pretty well spread out across Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. My husband is in the same boat. We enjoy having a quiet, no-travel-hassle kind of Thanksgiving. We don't really celebrate Christmas (no gifts); it is a quiet day off from work.
There are little things that make this time of year special for me. I used to eat peppermint ice cream at my Aunt Tootie's house around Christmas. As far as I remember, that was the only time of year you could get it. Nowadays, I can find it at the grocery store any time, but when I eat it, the taste still triggers happy Holiday memories of long ago. Eggnog is another special treat this time of year. I usually buy at least one container of eggnog (no more than 1/2 gallon at a time) every year. Sometimes I put a bit of "adult" beverage in it, and sometimes I drink it straight. I also love to admire the Christmas lighting folks do on their houses and yard. Some folks keep it simple, and some make the power company smile with glee at the over-the-top light show they put on. We ordered a Christmas tree this year since I wanted to have tangible nostalgia from my childhood. My challenge will be putting cat friendly decorations on it. No glass ornaments for us!
While you may get sick and tired of hearing worn out holiday tunes, and you can't bear to see another Black Friday or Christmas sale ad on TV, there are some special things that make this a wonderful time. Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas. And remember to say NO to fake reindeer.

Some Days It's Tough Being An Introvert

Today I went to the grocery store as I do every week. This week was a bit more trying since I have an "out-of-order" left hand (from surgery on one of the fingers) and bad tendinitis in my right elbow. Trying to push a cart with one semi-bad arm was a challenge, especially trying to dodge kids and fellow shoppers paying attention to everything except where they are going. Then I accidentally banged the surgery finger which really made me want to cry. 
Normally I can grin and bear the grocery store level of human interaction. But today it seemed EVERY human being was jumping up and down on my last nerve. Things I can normally ignore seemed to have a neon "look at me" sign. I was tired and not in the mood to shop. But shop I did.
I finally got everything I needed, checked out, and hobbled the shopping cart to my truck. Then what happens? This over-eager cart collecting employee suddenly appears as I'm putting groceries in my vehicle, chatting away about what an awful shame it is that we aren't even at Thanksgiving yet but look at all the Christmas stuff. Bla, bla, bla....he went on and on. Normally I would have been delighted to have a conversation about the ridiculous early-ness of Christmas (since I do believe it gets crazier every year), but today I was tired and hurting. For a brief moment I even wondered if this guy was some psychopath trying to kidnap me. But I soon realized he was just a bored store employee talking to anyone who would listen. I did my best to chat with him...forceably...against my Introverted Will. Once all my groceries were in the truck, he took the cart and bid me a "pleasant day". Whew, glad THAT'S over. 
I literally sat in my truck for a few minutes after this sudden and random interaction so I could recover enough to drive home. I realized how the deck of life is sometimes stacked against introverted people. When an introvert interacts with other people, they lose energy. The more people they are interacting with, the more tiresome it can be. Even if they are talking to people known to them or people of a similar mindset, it is still using up the introvert's energy. The only way to get that energy back is to be alone long enough to recharge. 
Extroverts, by contrast, get energy from interacting with people. At the end of the cocktail party, they are ready for round 2, 3, 4, etc. The introvert is ready to hide in a closet for three days. 
So extroverts, the next time you're chatting away with someone who is responding in small sentences or not responding much at all, don't be offended. You might be talking to an introvert who is having a really introverted day.

Halloween Decor Part 3

Part three of my Halloween 2015 decor blog will cover how I did my Halloween signs. In years past, I only had one sign that hung on my front door to further indicate to trick-or-treaters that I was open for Halloween.
I designed the original sign on my computer and printed on 13"x19" paper. I affixed the paper to a larger piece of foam board. On the back of the foam board, I glued a small picture frame loop so I had the option of hanging the sign. For the total effort, I invested about two hours of work and maybe $3 for the paper, printer ink, and foam board.

The original Halloween sign I made a few years ago

 

The picture frame hook used on the back of the sign

This year I propped the sign in the window of my front porch instead of hanging it on the door. It complemented the new Halloween sign I made this year. 
I wasn't planning on making a new sign, but on a trip to the local craft store I found some unexpected inspiration. While wandering down the isles (a practice I've adopted to look for ideas and interesting products), I happened upon a display of deeply discounted wood cutouts. One was the shape of a typical Halloween cat. It was only $2 (normally $5) so I figured that was an inexpensive investment. I wasn't sure how I would use it, but when I got home, I remembered I had an 8x10 black canvas (these are widely available now and offer some interesting painting ideas). I put the cat against the canvas and the ideas started flowing. When I was done painting everything, the results were pretty entertaining:

The 2015 Halloween sign

 After I'd painted the cat black, I realized I needed to do something to the black canvas to make the cat stand out. I did a "glow" effect by layering different acrylic colors. I started with white, then yellow, then orange, then a mix of magenta and orange, and finished with magenta. I painted "Happy Halloween" in a spooky font with orange paint. To enhance the cat, I only painted his eyes, and I used silver paint to further define his legs, head, and tail. I was very happy with the results. I had about 3 hours of effort and roughly $8 invested in the new sign (the cat was $2 and the canvas (purchased a while ago) was about $6).
I propped up the sign in the window on the other side of the door on my front porch. With the two signs, it gave the house a festive pre-Halloween look. It also advertised ahead of time that I would be celebrating Halloween. I held off putting out the remaining decorations until Halloween afternoon.
I hope you enjoyed this installment of my 2015 Halloween decorating. Keep your eyes peeled for the remaining three installments.

Halloween Decor Part 2

This is a continuation of the previous blog about my 2015 Halloween decorations. In the first blog, I described how I created the die hard Bruins Fan. This blog will cover the ten jars I placed on my front steps. They had LED candles and Halloween themed cut-outs. I had a set of orange jars and a set of purple jars, but after dark, the colors didn't show up very well with just candlelight. They were more impressive in the daylight.

One of the purple glass jars with bat cut-out.

I purchased the jars at a local craft store several weeks before Halloween. I was there to buy other art supplies and happen to notice the jars were on sale for $1.00 each (regular price was $2.00). I only purchased four orange jars and two purples jars at the time. When I got home and started brainstorming Halloween ideas, I realized it would be neat to alternate the jars on the steps leading to my front porch. The only problem was I have five steps and I'd purchased six jars. I decided to go back and buy enough jars to have three pair of orange jars and two pair of purple jars. This way I could have a jar on each side of each step with alternating colors. I also decided it would be safer and easier to put LED candles in the jars. The last thing I wanted was a trick-or-treater brushing past a jar and their costume being set ablaze by a real candle. 

The owl jar. Use of LED candles was safer and easier.

At the time I bought the first set of jars, I'd also purchased a couple of 3" tall LED candles. Once I had the plan laid out, I went back to the art store and bought enough 3" candles for all ten jars. They were only $1.99 each. I lucked out when I went back to buy more of the same jars since they were still on sale at 50% off (only $1 each). All told, I invested about $10 for ten jars, $20 for 10 LED candles, $2 for the wire used to stabilize the jars, and $1 for the foam used to protect the bottom of the jars. The foam was helpful for two reasons: it protected the jars from the hard concrete steps and also kept the jars from sliding or shifting around. I used hot glue to affix the foam to the jars.

The foam protected the glass jars from scraping on the concrete steps

The decoration on the jars was an idea I'd thought about last Halloween but didn't have time to bring it to fruition. I settled for candles in glass squares last year. I also had wider steps to work with (so I could use flame candles). This time my stair case was a bit narrower so I had to modify the idea to make it work safely. 
I cut out five different Halloween themes: bat, jack-o-lantern, howling wolf, owl, and cat face. I affixed the cut-outs to the jar using scrap-booking adhesive squares. They held well, except for the jack-o-lanterns. Since I wrapped them around the jars, I had to use some extra tape to hold them against the jars. I actually had two ghosts cut out for the jars, but they ended up being too large. I used them to decorate my studio window instead.

Scary cat face

One other modification I did was add some floral wire to the jar rims so I could wire the jars to the railing on my front steps. This way if a costume were to catch any of the jars, the worst that happened is a controlled, gentle fall. I didn't want to risk any of the jars breaking and children (or adults) getting cut.

Thin, inexpensive floral wire helped stabilize the jars

 All told, I spent about six hours on the jars (including time to make all the necessary cut-outs) and roughly $33 on materials. The effect was a very nice touch as people came up the stairs to get candy.

All the jars lit during a test before I took them outside

Here you can see the orange and purple colors; the colors were indistinguishable after dark

In the next blog, I'll cover how I did my two Halloween signs.

Halloween Decor Part 1

I don't normally follow up my Halloween blogs with a "how to" for the decorations. But this year I had so many decorations, I thought it might be fun to give other Halloween enthusiasts some ideas. Here's a brief summary of the 2015 spooky decor:

• Skeleton dressed as a die hard Bruins Fan
• Ten glass candle-lit jars with themed cut-outs
• "Happy Halloween" signs
• A bat cave in the pumpkin with eight bats
• Mummy cat with lit rib cage
• Buzzard, mini jack-o-lanterns, decorated candy bucket

I'll cover all the details (including pictures) in six upcoming blogs. This blog covers how I created the perfect die hard Bruins Fan.

  The skeleton's outfit had several elements. He was wearing my Bruins PJ bottoms, my Bruins sweater, a handmade black and yellow yarn wig, and he was holding a rally sign. The clothing was the easiest since all I had to do was put it on Mr. Skinny. I did have to use a pin to reduce the waist size of the PJ pants to keep them from falling off. It is a toss up between the wig and the sign for which had a larger investment.

Inexpensive yarn used for the skeleton's wig

For the wig, I purchased two bundles of knitting yarn (364 yards each). I couldn't find small bundles, so now I have lots of leftover yarn to knit a sweater. Sadly I have NO clue how to knit. I guess I'll learn in my spare time. Each yarn bundle was $2.99, so I have roughly $6 invested in the wig. I purchased inexpensive "super saver" type of yarn since I wasn't worried about it falling apart. As for time, it probably took roughly 4-5 hours to complete. I first measured out a length of yarn about 30" and cut one black and one gold strand together. From there I kept using that as a measure. After I'd cut about 10 lengths of each color of yarn, I would randomly choose a new "measuring" piece of yarn to cut future strands. I kept doing this over and over until I had fairly randomly measured lengths that were all between 26" and 36". This gives a pleasing "sloppy" look to the wig. I grouped 10-12 strands of alternating black and gold yarn until I had about 18 total bundles. I used a black piece of yarn to connect the bundles by tying a knot around the first group, then the second, and so on.

This is one end of the wig where I started tying the bundles together

Another view showing the bundles tied together to make a natural "part"

For the rally sign, I purchased a 14"x22" piece of thin poster material for 49 cents. The other materials used for the sign were items I already had, but at most they would have cost just a few dollars to purchase. I laid out my design and decided it would look cool to have "Bruins" in gold lettering on a black background. I used my computer to print out "Bruins" in all caps in a thick font that I mirrored horizontally. I printed the backwards letters onto a sheet of self stick paper (the kind normally used for package labels). I stuck the letters to a piece of gold art paper. I used a pair of scissors and an art knife to cut out each letter. When I flipped them over, they were perfectly cut and no sign of what I used as a guide. I glued each letter to a long black rectangle. 

The rally sign. The Bruins won Halloween night so it must have worked!

Once that was complete, I had to fit the piece onto the poster around the brown bear I'd drawn. I had the idea to cut around the bear's ears and fit the black rectangle behind them. It made for an awesome effect and a tighter bond with the poster. I simply glued the rectangle to the poster and the bears ears to the rectangle. Time-wise, I probably had about 4 hours in the poster. My husband also helped me by re-enforcing the back of the poster so it wouldn't flop around while Mr. Skinny was holding it. 

Close-up of the lettering and how I fit the black section behind the bear's ear

The awesome reinforcement my husband did to keep the sign from collapsing

I hope you enjoyed the coverage of the die hard Bruins Fan decoration. I had a ton of fun creating a festive atmosphere this Halloween. Look for future blogs covering the rest of the decorations.