Could have been in theater

You see, it all started when we received an invitation to attend my family's annual hotdog roast. Usually this event is held at my brother Greg's very wooded property where you need a flashlight to see where you are walking. This year, my sister held it at her home- right in suburbia. There was no mention of dressing up, but I decided that it would add some fun to the evening. Off to the thrift store I went, and in short order had the perfect loose woman outfit. You can't see the 34D red bra I am wearing (nor the stuffing) under my leopard sweater. The black micro mini skirt and funky black boots, in addition to those hideous earrings, glasses, and a big wad of gum (I had the "hair" already) came together quite well, even if I do say so myself. I vamped on over to my sister's house. Some family laughed, some just shook their heads, and some (Michael, pictured here) clowned around with me. Apparently the older male neighbor across the street doesn't speak to my sister and her family, and he pulled out of his driveway while I was standing outside. I thought he was going to drive into a mailbox...and he didn't wave back at me. Party pooper!

Punkin Patch

To get to Glacier Ridge Park requires leaving the urban area of Columbus and driving along a road where crops are still grown and harvested. There is a family owned farm market and I was so intrigued by the site of hundreds of pumpkins still lying in a field that I stopped on my way home to capture a few pictures. As it turned out, this photo of "picked" pumpkins was much more colorful than a dirt field with one pumpkin per square yard. The day was glorious- blue sky and sunshine- and the pumpkins glowed orange in the bright light.

A victim of statistics

My poor blog has been paid little attention in the past few months. There are 2 primary reasons for this. First, I started a different position at THE Ohio State University July 1. In my former job I always had some task to do, but I could, if I wanted, read other blogs and post to my own from time to time. Not so in my position as Disease Management Coordinator in Pain and Palliative Medicine! Every minute of every day is full. Alas, this leaves no time for much of anything except reading my email in the morning. Second, I am currently enrolled in a 700 level statistics course as required by the masters degree I am working on. This takes a whole lot of my "spare" time. What time is left I spend with my husband and our furry family.
In light of this, I am not planning to quit my blog altogether, but postings will be sporadic.
Happy Friday!

Cute as a button

Ernie the wild kitten had a fun weekend. Even though he has grown amazingly in the past couple of weeks, he still is way too small to be left alone with the collies unsupervised. He has the total abandon normal for his age, and would pounce Winnie's nose and that would just about be his last pounce. So he has spent the time we are at work in the nursery/bathroom with his bed, food and lots of toys. This weekend he spent most of the time out running around and he had a ball! He climbed the stairs, chairs, and blankets; he chased Sam and Tabby and was chased back in return; he swatted dogs, cats, toys, and dirt on the floor. By mid afternoon Sunday he couldn't keep his eyes open and fell asleep in my lap. After awhile, I got up and put him in his bed, where he tried to stay awake but failed...over and over. His eyes would close and he would wobble back down to sleep...and grow to play tomorrow.

Chowing

Ernie loves to eat. He just went for his first vet visit yesterday and he has doubled his weight in the time we've had him. His favorite posture is to put both front paws into the food and go to town.
Something very sweet- and interesting- is that he immediately goes to the food bowl after I cuddle him and nuzzle his head. Being cuddled and eating appear related, which is not surprising, I suppose, given the short time ago he was with his mamma cat.
He continues to bring us joy in his exuberant kitten ways. He is quite the little scrap o'kitty.