It looks like a mosh pit of kittens.
Bigger Girl is thrilled to be back at work at the biology research center. It seems they were hoping she would be back this summer, and left a lot of glassware to be sterilized in anticipation of not having to do it themselves. Now, they don't.
Jaime is especially thrilled she is back. They get along well, and she manages to get his mangled English the way he gets her mangled Spanish.
Yesterday he was going out in the truck, but it had a flat tire. He thought it was just a bit of a slow leak, so he pumped it back up and headed to the back field. It blew out badly, and Bigger Girl, playing on the "that's how babies are made" joke, told him "That's how gator tails are made!"
Gator tails, for those who don't live in south Louisiana, is the nickname for the huge shreds of tire left on the highway after an 18 wheeler has a blowout. The long strips of tire really do look, from a distance and curled up on the side of the road, like the tail of an alligator.
She also got to ride one of the horses, one that she especially likes. He flicks his tail at her and flirts when she comes by, because she sometimes brings treats.
Also about tails, the tail end of Kida the Mosquito, the aging, asthmatic Siamese, is in trouble. She has taken to performing her business on the couch in our bedroom, since she finds, on the rare occasion she sneaks in, that the bed is encased in an impenetrable shielding of plastic. She is going to find her rump up the creek or down the river if she doesn't cut it out.
(Not really, of course. This is just spouting, because it's a mess to have to clean up after her, as well as take care of 11 litter boxes. Yes, you have to have that many when you have lots of fosters.)
If you have to deal with any creatures that have tails today, i hope they don't give you any trouble.
Today is
A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed Day -- simply a good day to remember this, and thank a friend
Arbor Day -- Costa Rica
Avon Heritage Duct Tape Festival -- Avon, OH, US (through Sunday; everything wacky and wonderful about duct tape is celebrated in the Duct Tape Capital of the World, home of the Duck brand of duct tape)
Dulcimer Days -- Coshocton, Ohio, US (through the 17th; enjoy the restored 19th Century Roscoe Village and the charming music of dulcimers)
Fly A Kite Day (on the anniversary of Ben Franklin's kite experiment)
Global Wind Day -- to celebrate wind energy
Magna Carta Day -- UK (King John set his seal on the document this day in 1215)
Mangaia Gospel Day -- Mangaia, Cook Islands
Native American Citizenship Day -- US (passage, in 1924, of the legislation recognizing citizenship of Native Americans in the US)
National Lobster Day
Nature Photography Day -- sponsored by the North American Nature Photography Association
Sacred Heart of Jesus -- Roman Catholic Christian
Salvation Day -- Azerbaijan
Separation Day -- Delaware, US
Smile Power Day -- test out smile power today, it's free!
Sneak a Kiss Day -- usual litany of cautions with this internet generated holiday
St. Vitus' Day (Patron of actors, comedians, dancers, dogs, epilepsy sufferers; against animal attacks, dog bits, epilepsy, lightning, oversleeping, rheumatic chorea, Saint Vitus Dance, snake bites, storms, wild beasts; Badia Calavena, Italy; Czech Republic; Forio, Italy; Prague, Czech Republic; Recanati, Italy; Vacha, Germany; Wetsens, Netherlands; Zeven, Germany)
Valdemar's Day and Reunion Day -- Denmark (an official Flag Day)
Vestalia -- Ancient Roman Calendar (main and final celebration)
Work @ Home Fathers' Day -- special kudos to the dads who work from home by telecommuting, or care for house and kids while the wife works outside the home
Anniversaries Today:
Arkansas becomes the 25th US State, 1836
Gustaf, Crown Prince of Sweden marries Princess Margaret of Connaught, 1905
King Hussein of Jordan marries Lisa Halaby (Queen Noor), 1978
Birthdays Today:
William Dean Martin, 1981
Neil Patrick Harris, 1973
Ice Cube, 1969
Lisa McCall, 1969
Dina Meyer, 1969
Courtneney Cox, 1964
Helen Hunt, 1963
Jim Belushi, 1954
Waylon Jennings, 1937
Mario Cuomo, 1932
Erroll Garner, 1921
Muzaffer Tema, 1919
Bob Wian, 1914
Edvard Grieg, 1843
Henry FitzRoy, illegitimate son of Henry VIII, 1519
Edward the Black Prince, 1330
Today in History:
The Assyrians record a solar eclipse that is later used to fix the chronology of Mesopotamian history, BC763
King John of England puts his seal to the Magna Carta, 1215
The first human blood transfusion is administered by Dr. Jean-Baptiste Denys, 1667
Benjamin Franklin proves that lightning is electricity, 1752
Delaware votes to suspend government under the British Crown and separate officially from Pennsylvania, 1776
Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier, co-pilot of the first-ever manned flight (1783), and his companion, Pierre Romain, become the first-ever casualties of an air crash when their hot air balloon explodes during their attempt to cross the English Channel, 1785
Charles Goodyear receives a patent for vulcanization, a process to strengthen rubber, 1844
The Oregon Treaty establishes the 49th parallel as the border between the United States and Canada, from the Rocky Mountains to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, 1846
Crown Prince Wilhelm becomes Kaiser Wilhelm II and is the last emperor of the German Empire, 1888
The most destructive tsunami in Japan's history kills more than 22,000 people, 1896
A fire aboard the steamboat SS General Slocum in New York City's East River kills 1000, 1904
Tabulating Computing Recording Corporation (IBM) is incorporated, 1911
U.S. President Woodrow Wilson signs a bill incorporating the Boy Scouts of America, making them the only American youth organization with a federal charter, 1916
A German expedition led by Karl Wien lost sixteen members in an avalanche on Nanga Parbat (9th highest mountain), the largest single day loss of life on an 8,000m peak, 1937
In the Saskatchewan general election, the CCF, led by Tommy Douglas, is elected and forms the first socialist government of North America, 1944
Israel and Vatican City establish full diplomatic relations, 1994
Near earth asteroid 2002 MN misses the Earth by 75,000 miles (121,000 km), about one-third of the distance between the Earth and the Moon, 2002
God bless you for taking care of these kittens. I would not know of how many are abandoned or killed if not for the work that my sister does in cat rescue.
ReplyDeleteGator tails! I am glad I do not know what they look like,but I am very familar with all the debris in the roads left from blown out tires!
I try not to drive into Atlanta too much, too much traffic!
That almost looks like a photo of one big cat, until I enlarge the picture. They look like a handful.
ReplyDeleteKay, traffic is the only thing that could make this teetotaler into a drinking woman!
ReplyDeleteStephen, they are.
My BIL must have heard this term, but he usually says Gator Hide, not tail. But as a trucker, he doesn't want either... I love the little kitten mosh pit. I keep thinking Mosquito... Have you tried Rue? Most cats don't like the smell, and stay away where it is. I have no idea if that would help, but if it eliminates potty stops on the couch... (eew...)
ReplyDeleteCat