The feline in me

My next obsession is official. And it's expensive.

I want a Ragdoll blue or lynx bi-color pet quality, male ~$700 dollar kitten.

My house is clean! It's astonishing. I enticed DSon to clean up his mess with a car. I enticed my daughter to clean her pile with a kitten. BIG messes. So big, it shocks everyone that comes in. They had stuff everywhere. Downstairs is gorgeous. A big, open, bright room. Upstairs is cleared and ready for fires in the woodburning stove.

I'm finished with classes, I'm almost done with working on the house. Even bought a trellis for the vine that the insurance people didn't like on the edge of the roof. I'm going to broke...will cost about $600 total to get the house up to snuff for the insurance people to cover me. Still, getting the whole in the roof fixed was NECESSARY, and I wouldn't have done it, or known there was a big leak, unless they pointed it out. Same with the tree trimming, and I get to finally get rid of the JUNK around this place. And painting? Better do it than not. So I can't really complain, I needed to be told to do it.

DD got herself a kitten! We went to Sacto. I wasn't willing to put bloody references and pay extra for nuetering (they have it done in Sacto for $35, part of the total $67 fee, I'd have to get it done myself in Davis for $100 on top of the $100 to adopt.) Davis would even charge $5 for the cardboard crate to take it home! So we went to Sacto. Nobody asked for references, phone numbers, vet references, etc.... and we'll be bringing home Fondue on Tuesday in a cardboard crate they give us for free with the kitty. We even get a free voucher for a Sacto vet in the first three days. I made one to a vet hospital off Jefferson in West Sac.

The real reason is that I liked the variety of kittens on Petfinder. There was one called Wheaty, a white lynx, that I would have wanted to adopt myself if he were still there...but he wasn't. DD almost wanted this crazed little 5 week old wild cat yellow kitten, that yowled, butted and rubbed against the cage bars. I nixed that, and luckily she played with all the small kittens, and chose a playful climber, a dilute tabby girl. Her mom was an amazingly gentle black cat. She also had a darker tabby brother. YES, I'm very tempted to adopt the momma cat, but I've never had cats~ we still have crazy Woody dog to convince not to pounce and lick cats...IF DS and Woody were moved out already, I would totally get the momma cat too, if the little boy tabby is adopted. BUT they're not.

Besides, I DO want a ragdoll. I love the lighter bi-color masked ones, where the v doesn't go through the middle of the eye, but all around it, like a Mardi Gras mask. Quiet, gentle, but playful. A cuddle-bug. Non-shedding, with symetrical markings in any color but seal, because I like the lighter colors. Mitted or not. Male.

I have to think....that black cat struck me as the most gentle cat I'd ever seen. But how would it be to live with her? Could I clip her claws even?? I am afraid of cat claws and cat bites. Really. Starting with a predictable kitten would be different...that's also why I'm chosing a Ragdoll. And WHAT ABOUT WOODY??!

tennis, tooth and siamese cats

Yep. Siamese cats are my next distraction. I needed one! I had a day, and Eat to Live wasn't doing it, not biking, not tomatos. Ack. So now I distract myself with Siamese cats.

Tennis lesson was okay, he talks alot, and I'd rather just hit and figure it out. I did learn two important things:
1) I don't really need to change my grip, it's sort of set in 40 year old stone. And if it doesn't hurt my wrist (it doesn't) it's fine.
2) Pulling back my racket low is the change I need to make.

Actually, that was worth the money. But Coach didn't click with me, as far as a tennis teacher. Now I'm curious about Dale. Would Dale see what I wanted a coach to see? I change in shifting weight, a trick to make me more consistent? I really feel like a rookie, and Coach talked to me as an experienced player adding a stroke. Sigh. Heck, I just want my shots to go in!

Oh. Teeth. I went expecting to have a small cavity filled and a crown replaced. Not so simple. I could get a titanium post or a bridge, basically. 3 appointments, and I have an old person's bridge. Bah. But at least that part of my mouth will be done with. My problem tooth will be GONE. The little cavity will be done somewhere along the way. Cleaning can come after. Oh well. At least bridges are covered by dental insurance, unlike the $3000 titanium implant. Which my mouth would undoubtedly reject as well.

So Dale is cute. I'm still off men, though, because of dd's break-up with sweet heart boyfriend. Bah.

Siamese stray

I need to get over her break-up - she's doing fine! I see her laughing, happy with friends, so maybe it WAS too much interdependence that I wasn't aware of, and she's enjoying herself not worrying about him being unhappy about her work/friends/and so on! Still feel really bad for him, but he's young and probably needed his own life back and didn't know it. So she's a wise young thing.

She called to me last night, "Mom, come here quick!" It was about 11:30 or midnight, and she brings me outside, and starts searching for something, and next thing I know, she finds and coaxes over a cat. A young cat, thin, no collar, and a blue siamese, or something like that. She's petting it, and tells me it started following her back to our house (it really happens?!) and so she wants to feed it something, so I go in and open a can of tuna. I bring it out, and it starts eating. 1) I'm suprised that I'm agreeing to feed a stray cat. 2) It's not a common cat at all, it's a purebred siamese. 3) It followed her home. 4) Her grandma has always had siamese!

She wants to adopt it if it comes back to us. But it was threatened by the gray stray that was adopted by Jeff (the skanky thing that used my frontyard as a litter box) and ran off a while later. She's hoping it'll come back and is going to buy cat food or treats during her lunch break, and wait outside tonight.

I would let her adopt it. As an outside cat, since we have Woody, of course. Then after Woody lives out his life, it could become an inside cat.

I hope it comes back too. I'd much rather have her get a cat than a new boyfriend!

Breaking up is hard to do...

My daughter broke it off with her boyfriend of 9 months. Oh god, she cried, felt sick, struggled. But she felt like she was taking on too much of his emotions, and his insecurities of time she spent with friends, at work, her male friends. And the more he got insecure, no matter what she said or did, the worse it felt for her to be with him. Dang, I cried. They've barely spent a day apart, and on the one hand, I think she should help him deal with the insecurities, yet live her life, and know that it's a good thing...but that's for adults (and most adults can't do that.) She's only 16! Heck, I can't do it. So she knows self preservation, and a better sense of the need for balance. It's her life.
He's a sweet heart, all the way. His mom and I really got along well, and we were all used to them together. I didn't know it would be that hard for ME.

We talked on the way back from the Winter's ride. This is the time for her to learn about relationships, and live her life. It was so very hard for her to break up with him. But she was unhappy, and began to not want to be with him with all the heavy emotional stuff responsibility. Worrying about him, worrying that what she did made him unhappy. Even her work! Still, somehow, it seems like the opposite sides of the same coin.

Rode 33.65 miles to Winters and back. Slow, with lots of talking.

It's too darned hot...

Just got back from a 65 mile ride out to the Dunnigan Hills. I was really doing well, until about 3:00pm. 102 degrees. I was concerned at the late start off time, but thought I'd be okay. Damn, that was the longest cross town ride I've ever done. Thank god Bill stopped at a feed store about 15 miles from town. He actually originally thought of it for Tuscan Bill, but that last jag, I got spit out the back. Turning South, it was a hot head wind, and I was getting over heated. Michael K soaked himself with the hose. I had him soak the back of my head. I slammed down an ice cold orange soda. When was the last time I had soda? I had a flashback of over heating as a 15 year old at a tennis competition, must have been one of those 110 days, and drinking down an orange soda. Tasted just as good as this time. Got me to town, but then I started getting a headache, and water wasn't enough. I had water, but I needed salts! 4 miles from home, I thought I was going to pass out: silly me! I was just beginning to freak myself out, cause I was so hot and dehydrated, and I never get headaches.

FINALLY got home. Drank Cytomax. Made a smoothie with Cytomax. Laid down, wasn't tired, but now, and hour later, the headache is mostly gone, and I'm beginning to feel normal again. I lost 2 pounds in water on that ride.

What do I want to eat? Fried ramen with bacon. And I'm trying to be a vegan. Dang, I just need the salts and fat. I'll see. Good thing I had that 1/2 serving of rice last night I was feeling so guilty about.

defeating myself

Ack...played with James, and forgot all about 'point of contact' - all I could think of is that James never loses, and he's gonna lose with me. My mind was watching the opponents, the court, next to the court, sorta tracking the ball, worrying about my stroke, hitting it out, in the net, and blech. EVERYTHING but the point of contact. Once I had 3 mishits in a row. Amazingly, we won the point, but my focus was horrible. I bet meditation would help too.

So...topspin or practice point of contact? I guess topspin, and also point of contact. Focus with my crazed monkey mind...

I want to enjoy tennis, not be frustrated by it. Unforced errors are frustrating.

Riding to RHPhillips tomorrow. Meeting Russell at Nugget, then picking up Michael K at 29. I'm a little concerned about the heat. Against my better judgement (which squealed as I did it anyway) I ate 1/2 bowl more food when I wasn't hungry. 1/4 cup white rice (horrors), cut up tomato, and 1 Tbp butter soaked mushrooms (uber horrors). I dunno, I thought I'd need the carbs for tomorrow. silly.

Coach stays coach. I might want private lessons later, if I get earnest about improving my game.