Meet Sam

Blogosphere, meet Sam the cat:


He is 6.75 lbs of nuzzles and tiny mews. I loves him. And I think he loves me, too, because he won't stop snuggling me.

I picked Sam up at Petsmart today, and the poor dear cried the whole way home. I let Spencer smell him in the carrier for a second, then we went upstairs to my knitty room. I sort of expected him to freak out and be skittish- that's been my experience with cats. They don't really like change. But when I opened the little carrier door, he came out, climbed in my lap, and got right to nuzzling. I know it was probably more about marking me with his scent than about affection, but it was still cute.


Once it was clear that he wasn't afraid of me or his new environment, I let him out of the knitty room, and we explored the upstairs. He checked out all the closets and the bathrooms, and we looked out windows. He seemed really laid back, and I'm not sure if it's him or the Feliway I spritzed about earlier that morning. He is a bit clingy, and follows so closely that I have to walk very slowly and make sure not to step on him. When I started down the stairs, he followed, and he and Spencer really saw each other for the first time.


Sam just froze at first, but when Spencer (at the bottom of the steps, on the other side of a baby gate) started to growl and jump around, Sam arched his back and hissed. Which in turn made Spencer even nuttier. After a minute or so of shushing, I got them to at least stop making threatening noises at each other. Sam sat on the landing, glaring down at Spencer; Spencer let out an occasional grumble in return. I felt some positive reinforcement might help, so I gathered both their treats and sat at the bottom of the stairs. Slowly, I got Sam to come down a few steps at a time for a tasty treat. Each time he got a little closer and Spencer was nice, he also got a treat. But once Sam was next to me on the second step, Spencer couldn't hold it back anymore. He let out a growly-bark (not especially mean, but very scary to Sam) and Sam hissed and ran back upstairs.


I spent the next hour or so going back and forth between Spencer and Sam. I don't want either one to feel neglected. Then I thought maybe Sam should have a chance to explore the downstairs area, so I put Spencer in the bathroom and got Sam. I tried to show Sam that Spencer was behind a door, and couldn't get him, but I guess Sam was still unsure. He wouldn't go anywhere near the door. But he did walk around, and leared that he could fit through the stair railing, and get to the kitchen through the little window above the sink. Then I put him back on the steps, and let Spencer out. He took off before Spencer even saw him.


I hung out with Spencer a little, then went back up to check on Sam. We played a little, and I saw him use the litter box. That was a great relief, because I know cats can be persnickety and I've heard some horror stories about stressed or angry cats suddenly refusing to use the litter box. A short while later, I also saw him nibble a bit of the dry food I left out for him. The only snag I hit was when Sam decided that my leg would make a nice scratching post. But a firm "No" and showing him the actual scratching post seemed to solve that problem. He even let me trim his front claws as he zonked out on the floor. This cat is freaking awesome.


Quick bit about his name: I am a huge fan of old-timey radio. I listen to Radio Classics on Sirius all the time, and my favorite shows are the detective and mystery shows. Two of the biggest characters from that genre are Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe. And they are who I named the cats after- Sam and Marlowe.

That's all for now, but I'm sure there will be more cat/dog shenanigans to follow.

Oops

(I wrote this blog yesterday from my iPhone, but forgot to publish it until just now.)

It was a perfect day to take the Jeep's top down! It was easier than I thought to get down, and sort of did all the work by itself. I rode around for a bit, blasting As I Lay Dying as loud as I could stand. It was awesome. Then I ran to Home Depot, picked up a plastic dropcloth, and drove over to our storage unit. The back seat needed to go. I thought it would probably slide under the folded up top, but I was wrong. So I had to figure out how to get the top back up by myself- which is significantly more difficult than getting it down. It turns out that it's a lot easier if you pull it up while standing inside, just behind the front seats. Once that was under control, I returned my attention to the back seat. It suddenly dawned on me that I had no idea how much it weighed... For a second I thought I might be in over my head, but if Scott can Donkey Kong it up a flight of stairs without complaint, then surely I can move it 15 feet! After all, it's mostly foam, right? Well, it was tricky, but I did it. The sucker was kinda heavy, but more cumbersome than anything else. I got it wrapped up in the plastic, and shuffled it carefully past Scott's Triumph. The original floor mats went with it (they've been replaced with sturdier ones), and I was on my way.

Back at home, I cleaned the vinyl windows with their special cleaner, and rolled them up in my handy new Clover Patch Window Roll. All three windows fit easily, and it can be secured to the roll bars, above the soft top. I'm still anxiously awaiting the boot I ordered, which covers the top when it's down to protect it and keep it from flapping in the wind.

The more I drive this Jeep, the more I love it. I think I love it more than some members of my family. It's that great. I can't wait to drive it all summer with the top down, and kick ass in the snow again next winter. It really is an awesome vehicle.

Clearly the weekend is off to a good start, and let's hope that continues tomorrow, when I pick up my kitten! I was able to take off Monday and half of Tuesday for some get-to-know-you time with him. Everything is ready, except for Spencer. I don't think there's any way to prepare him for this. I did give him a bath, and a thorough brushing, but that was mostly for hair-management purposes. Wish us luck, and come back soon for pictures!

Kitten Update III

Yesterday, Wyatt, the little orange and white tabby, was supposed to be neutered. No such luck. It seems he caught the parasite too, and long story short, the vet won't operate on a sick cat. He and the other kittens are back on medication, and his next neuter attempt will be on the 29th. Understandably, the rescue organization won't send home a cat that is not healthy, or that hasn't been fixed. So it looks like I'll only be picking up his brother this Sunday, and Wyatt will get to come home on April 3rd. Poor little guy... Hopefully the third time is a charm (there was an initial attempt that failed because his wee testes hadn't dropped). Cross your fingers!

Another Kitten Update

Well, if you're here looking for kitten squees, you're going to be disappointed. Neither kitty gets to come home until the 21st. It seems one of the other kittens in the litter came down with a nasty parasite. All 5 in the litter are being treated (just in case), and their vet wants them to stay with Foster Mom until next weekend for observation. But now they'll get to come home together, and healthy. Still, the waiting is driving me nutty.

In the meantime, I guess I'll knit. I've got three projects going: a pair of socks with self-patterning yarn, a commissioned baby blanket for my boss with Homespun, and a wrap for myself with some sock yarn from last years Sheep and Wool. I'm trying to get the wrap done for a wedding Scott and I are going to on the 26th, but that might be pushing my abilities... There's only one way to find out!

Also, FYI: only 49 days until Sheep and Wool. Start saving your pennies.

Kitten Update

It turns out that the date for Wyatt's neuter was wrong- he doesn't go in until the 15th. That means I'll only be picking up one kitty this Sunday, the 14th. Wyatt will come home on the 21st. Blargh. The anticipation is killing me. The kitties' poor foster mom has been patient with all my ridiculous questions, but I'm pretty sure all my friends and family are growing tired of my kitten-centric status updates. I'm trying not to tweet about the cats again until they are here, but I think that just makes me talk more about them at work. Oh well.

Come back Sunday for kitten pictures!

Early Birthday Awesomeness

Scott has to work on my actual birthday, so we celebrated today! We started with what is becoming a tradition: a breakfast of bacon, eggs and toast, all cooked by Scott. Yum! Then we got all cleaned up and headed out. I had initially wanted to go hiking, but all the melting snow would make that a rather muddy endeavor. Scott suggested walking around downtown, which sounded equally as fun. So we parked near Eleganza, and walked over to Market St. We stopped by Edgeworks Knife & Supply, where we picked up a fancy-pants knife for a friend's wedding gift. Scott also bought me a new pocket knife- it's a Benchmade Mini-Presidio Ultra, and it has already tasted my blood (being a clod and a knife lover is a troublesome combination). I sense yet another tradition in the making: weaponry for my birthday!


The weather was perfect for wandering around! We slowly made our way back to the car, stopping for a drink along the way, and peeking into different shops as we passed. Once back in the lot next to the yarn store, Scott convinced me that it would be silly not to stop in- it was, after all, my birthday. I picked up the Spring Knitscene, and four hanks of Tabali, a cotton/viscose blend.


As we got back to the car, Scott said "Let's stop by Petsmart and just go look at the cats there." He had recently decided that he would be okay with getting a kitten, and I couldn't be more stoked. I didn't really see the point in looking at the cats at Petsmart, because the cats in that little glass room are just sort of on display... But I think Scott knew what I did not- there was a kitten adoption event today! We walked over, and saw three crates with 6 kittens total. 5 of them were brothers, and super cute! The lady there was very heplful, and let me hold them. When she mentioned that they were brothers, I heard Scott ask about whether it would be better to adopt two, so they could stay together. Of course the woman thought that was great, and before I knew it I was filling out an adoption application! For TWO KITTENS! Squee! It was hard to choose which two; they were all so cute and sweet. Scott really liked a little black and white one, and I really liked an orange and white one. So that's what we got! We had the option to take the black one home today (the orange kitty is scheduled for his neuter tomorrow), but felt bad seperating them. Plus we have no cat supplies yet! So instead, I will pick them up at Petsmart next Sunday (my actual birthday!), and I can hardly wait.

We didn't get any pictures, but I found them both on Petfinder: Wyatt and Cassidy. Finding a kitten named Cassidy was a funny coincidence! I don't know how long their pages will stay up since they've been adopted, but you can be sure that this blog will be filthy with kitten pictures next Sunday. As for Spencer, we're hopefull that he'll get along with his new little brothers. At least the kittens are being raised in a foster home with two big labs, so they're used to dogs. Now we just need to load up on kitten supplies, and make a vet appointment. Yay, kittens!

I think that maybe, just maybe, this birthday was even more awesome than last year. Thanks husband, for being so super. I heart you.