Cats and poodles

This past week has been spent doing two things:

1. Keep the cats from killing each other.

2. Sew a simple poodle skirt for a Halloween party with Chris's co-workers.

So far, the cats are alive. They are actually starting to like each other. There is lots of chasing. Still some hissing and growling. Yesterday they both took naps on our bed at the same time. Chris keeps telling me to find a home for this kitten, but I haven't found anyone yet.

Do you know someone in Charlotte who wants a kitten?

About the poodle skirt....I'm leaving that for the entry that can include a picture of the completed project. Lets just say that I have called my mom (and her wonderful co-worker) to talk me through this.

Who knew it could be so hard for a college educated woman to sew a skirt?

The other cat

Early this evening, one of our neighbors came over to ask if our cat was at home. She said there was a cat in her garage and just wanted to make sure it wasn't ours (Richard Parker did make his way into their garage once this summer when he was supposed to be helping me water the plants). I told her that if it was a dark cat with a bushy tail, that its a local cat that I see outside all the time.

About ten minutes later I was sitting at the computer when I heard loud meowing from outside. I looked out the window to see a small cat (not the dark one with the bushy tail). I went downstairs, stepped outside, and called the cat to me. He came running over meowing at me (obviously not a stray cat), and I saw right away that this cat is actually a kitten. I picked him up and he immediately started purring and rubbing his face against mine (no worries, he appears to be very clean).

I brought him inside and started explaining to Chris that this is not a cat that should be wandering around in the rain; he must be lost. Meanwhile, it took Richard Parker about three minutes to even notice that I was holding his new frenemy.

I decided that I couldn't just let this cat be lost forever, so I decided to take him in for the time being. We started knocking on some doors, but it was raining and a Friday night when most people are not at home in our neighborhood.

So for now, I have another cat. He lives in the bathroom downstairs for his own protection. Richard Parker is not sure what to make of the situation--lots of hissing, sniffing, growling, etc.

Chris already told me that if no one claims him tomorrow when we post some signs, I cannot keep him. I'm not sure he realizes how much I don't like animal shelters (too many cats, not enough homes).

Is it winter in your church building?

As I stood there looking in my mirror before leaving for church, I thought to myself: "Self, maybe you should wear something warmer in case it gets cold in church." But then I realized I was already wearing a long sleeve shirt, and that adding a winter coat or thick tights might look bizarre when it is perfect fall weather outside.

I regret that I didn't trust my first instinct because I'm pretty sure it was below freezing in there today. It made me re-think something.

I used to keep my classroom really cold on test days for two reasons.

#1 Lots of teenage bodies in one room all day can get smelly.
#2 I thought it would keep them more alert.

But I realized today that when I'm cold, I can't even concentrate. I asked a stupid question that had already been answered because I was too cold to hear it the first time.

These are the times when I need to be pregnant. I hear that keeps you warm.

Washington DC--Day Two

There were so many things in Day Two of the trip, but I couldn't possibly post all pictures! We did a lot of walking on this day; in fact, by the end of the day, Chris was limping from blisters.

We officially started our day in the Holocaust museum and naturally don't have pictures from there. However, I highly recommend visiting there if you ever get a chance. It was absolutely amazing. A truly unforgettable experience.

We then made our way over to the Natural History Museum where Chris got to spend time with his childhood ambitions of being a paleontologist--that is, after spending way too much money on "locally grown organic" lunch in the museum cafe. I was still hungry.


Then we walked to the front of the White House, which actually takes much longer than it should because about half of the roads are blocked off.

Then we walked to all of the monuments and memorials. Lincoln, Vietnam, Korean, WWII, Washington, and Jefferson-- I'll just say this for all: awesome.

The new WWII memorial.

Outside the Lincoln.

Someone else figuring out how to take cool pictures with our camera. No joke. He actually fiddled with settings to make sure the light was captured perfectly. We have no idea what he was talking about.

Washington DC--Day One

I have decided to post our DC trip in sections. Each post will be a different day of our trip. I figure no one will read a really long post anyway. I look out know my audience (however small it may be).

One of my friends recently went to DC and told me about a Jim Henson exhibit at the Smithsonian. So naturally, I made that our first stop out of the metro station. It was really cool because there were lots of original sketches from all of Henson's creations.

But what was even cooler was that there were some actual puppets. There were lots of signs saying "No photography," but we couldn't resist. The pictures aren't as focused as we would like them to be, but it's the best we could do while trying to hide the camera in our bag.

Me with Bert and Ernie. You can't tell from the picture, but I am really happy here!

Chris with the original Kermit the Frog.

Our next stop was the Air and Space Museum. Not really my cup of tea, but you have to go while in DC. I was really saddened when we got to this exhibit only to see that they had taken down Pluto's sign.

So I made my own.

Next, we toured the Capitol Building. Chris took lots of pictures inside, but I didn't want to post too many online. Perhaps he will.

That might be it for tonight. My bed is calling me. Slowly but surely I will get everything from our trip on here.