In the Headlights

FURminator

Cousin Julie just spent a few days here, but in that short time made a number of important changes.  One was placing the butcher block table in the kitchen, where it looks right at home, and another was to put the cat dishes under the butcher block instead of in the corner of the kitchen, where most of my friends have stepped in them at one time or another.  No biggie with the dry cat food, but the water dish is another matter.

Equally momentous was a suggestion that has changed the life of Dandelion, my big shaggy tomcat.  I mentioned that 90% of what the vacuum cleaner picks up around here is cat hair.  She saw my ineffectual attempts to brush his coat with a conventional cat brush, and said "You need a FURminator".

So we went out and bought one.  Not cheap.  We got the small one with a 1.7" edge.  At first, Dandy fought our attempts, but  seems to be taking it in stride.  The tool removes undercoat, leaving the topcoat intact, but removing a lot of the dense fur that makes it hard for some hairy cats to groom, and also adds considerably to the cathair tumbleweeds that pile up.  This morning, I caught him as he napped, and he let me have my way with him for a couple of minutes before bestirring himself and leaping to the ground.  By then, I had a large handful of hair in my hand.

Dandy looks better already.  I wonder how far I can push this.

If I Were a Carpenter

Red was a good carpenter.  It was how he made his living.  I never appreciated his skill more than when we did home projects.  We laid our wood floors together, and put a new roof on the house.  This is not to say I enjoyed it.  It was hard work, and harder still being the unskilled labor.  But now (that it's done) I'm glad we did it.

But this guy takes good to a whole new level.  L.C. sent us these  photos of an amazing project and an amazing talent.

Hmmm.  Looks like he's putting on a roof. 

And there's a ghost watching. Jeez, it looks like the ghost of Leonardo DaVinci.

Holy cow.  Look at all those nails.

3-dimensional perfection.

A beautifully rendered copy of DaVinci's self portrait.

I went to www.AbuNawaf.com.  It's all in Arabic (at least I think that's Arabic), so I can't say anything more about this work except that I think it's amazing.

Thanks, L.C. 

Mind-bending

At the wedding, Melissa's father astonished me with this number puzzle.  Do it quickly, but do the calculations correctly.

Think of a number between one and ten.

Multiply it by nine.

Add the digits together.

Subtract five.  Remember the result.

Now where one is "a" and two is "b", etc., figure out the letter that corresponds to your number.

Think of a country that begins with that letter.

Now what is the last letter of that country?

Think of an animal that begins with that letter.

Think of the last letter of the name of the animal.

Think of a fruit that begins with that letter.

Make a sentence that includes the name of the country, the animal and the fruit.

*******************

DRUM ROLL, PLEASE!!!!!

********************

Melissa's new father-in-law looked me in the eye and said"

"In Denmark, the kangaroos eat oranges."

I dropped my jaw.

A bit of clarification.

If you multiply any single digit other that "1" by nine, the sum of the digits is nine: 18, 27,36,45, 54,63,72,81. Subtract five and you get 4, so your letter is "d".

Not many countries start with "D".  Most people will think of "Denmark", and for an animal beginning with "k", kangaroo comes to mind, though I might have said "koala" given another moment.  But you are being rushed along.  Likewise, the fruit that begins with an "o"...hurry now...okay.

So the chances are very good that the sentence your victim will come up with is the one above.

*********************

Time to Remodel the Bathroom

Aw, Jeez.  Deb says this is how you get a man to wash his hands.  He could still be pretending, though.

 

Weird Stuff: Chastity Belts

Someone recently remarked that someone needed a chastity belt, which got me thinking.  Do they still exist?  I think of them as something knights put on their ladies when the went errant...but apparently they really didn't show up until until the 15th century.

They were designed to prevent sexual intercourse, masturbation, and rape.  Early models were clunky metal  locking affairs.  There are male and female versions, usually with holes to allow urination. 

  Modern versions are used in some countries for their intended purpose.  Others are made for bondage and domination play.

Most units today are locked with a padlock, which may be secured to prevent its being attacked with bolt cutters...sheesh...

Recently in the news, from Wikipedia :

A British man spent over 160,000 Rand for one made in South Africa, as a wedding gift for his bride-to -be.  (I see this as a red flag for this marriage.)

One woman set off metal detectors in an airport.  Her husband made her wear the belt when she went on vacation without him.  (Another red flag).

[Images from Myrtus blog]

Passionate Kisses

So I was seeking an illustration for yesterday's poem about a couple kissing passionately in an airport, and managed to find this article about kissing classes.  The couple were probably just doing their homework. 

Psychotherapist Cherie Byrd of Seattle teaches couples how to do that.  After dating a man who couldn't kiss (one of the saddest things there is, especially if you like him otherwise) she opened a kissing school.  Couples pay $275 to practice smooching.  Of course, for that, you could get a nice room on the beach and a bottle of good champagne.  But I suppose that isn't the point. 

In addition to neck nibbles and ear licks, Byrd recommends slowing down.  Good advice whenever you are bonding with someone. 

{Image:  a couple at the kissing school cram for the exam.]

Family is Sooooo Important

Forbes Magazine has published its annual list of the 13 top-earning dead celebrities.  These guys do very well. In fact, they earned $232 million in the last twelve months.  I say "guys" because the only gal on the list is Marilyn.

Some of them are unexpected.  For example, Einstein is on the list not for his brilliant mind, but because of the Baby Einstein DVDs.

The two deceased Beatles made the list, as did musicians Tupac Shakur and Bob Marley.

Here's the whole list:

1)   Elvis Presley
2)   John Lennon
3)   Charles Schulz
4)   George Harrison
5)   Albert Einstein
6)   Andy Warhol
7)   Dr. Seuss (Theodore Geisel)
8)   Tupac Shakur
9)   Marilyn Monoroe
10)  Steve McQueen
11)  James Brown
12)  Bob Marley
13)  James Dean

You can go to the Forbes link above to click on stories about the individual dead celebrities, or to see the lists from 2001 until now.

[Image of Steve McQueen from worldroots.com]

FBL

What a great idea.  The Foundation for a Better Life.  A non-profit organization founded in 2002 to promote a series of values widely held to be universal in this country.  Like truth, hard work, commitment, sacrifice.

A little (very little) futher investigation made me say "whoa".  The foundation is funded by billionaire Philip Anschultz, the 31st richest man in the U.S.  His father and grandfather were very successful, and he expanded their fortunes with investments in oil, telecommunications, railroads, sports teams and media.

He is a strong supporter of conservative and Christian causes, and a staunch supporter of President G.W. Bush. 

In 1996, he founded Qwest telecommunications, a company that has been embroiled since in suits over slamming, insider trading and accounting scandals.  There were questions that in 1999-2001, Qwest might have assisted Enron in concealing losses. 

So while I like the billboards, I wonder what else I am supporting just by saying that.

Trust.  Verify.

Wait for the other shoe to drop.

[Thanks to L.C. for the link.]

Countdown to Halloween

Here's some inspiration for your carving:

Deb and I saw this one at a pumpkin carving contest at work.  This poor guy has some abnormal gourd-like growth protruding from his right eye, as he cannibalizes a smaller squash.  Tragic!

And L.C. sent us these:

 

Some pretty warped minds out there, methinks.

The last one was included for my pathologist friend, Rita. 

TheWinkee (no, not that kind)

In a QA section of today's paper, someone asked about options to protect against unplanned gapes in the necklines (and in the men in the immediate vicinity).

The writer had tried wearing a camisole under such tops but found the extra layer too warm.  I have a couple of wrap dresses that give me that gape problem.  And securing the neckline with a safety pin always looks doofy.

So the Winkee fills that niche market.  It's a cute triangle of material with tabs that wrap around bra straps and center.  Unless your top really gapes, no skin will show, and your bra is covered.  Brilliant, really. 

I guess a dickey might work, but it is more of a neck and chest cover.  It doesn't get the whole bra territory.

It comes with a rouched or lacy edge.

The bad news (well, good news, really) is that they are adding more selections, so their ordering page is down.  You can preorder via email if you'd like, or return soon and place your order then.

I sent them an email asking them to let me know when their order page is up.  I'll follow up when I get my order.

Having said that, I always wear something with sleeves under a jacket, for the reason that dry-cleaning jackets is expensive, and wearing a Winkee or sleeveless cami will sweat up a jacket just as fast as it will any other top.

The Winkee is only $15 ($16 if you need a really long center tab.