Rushing around cleaning getting ready for tonight. I’ve decided that the innate talent that mothers have to smell alcohol on a teen’s breath at 300 yards is somehow related to the ability cat and dogs have to locate and lie in clean laundry in under 18 seconds.
Open Thread
This post is in: Open Threads
WereBear
We all love clean laundry.
RossInDetroit
I gotta do yard work. The English call it gardening but to me killing weeds and picking up litter will always be work.
celticdragonchick
Our kitty loves to get into one of the cups of my spouse’s bra when it has been taken out of the dryer…
I still don’t know what to make of that (or the fact that she can actually fit into the cup…)
RedKitten
It’s also probably related to the talent that cats have of knowing precisely when you have opened your book, magazine or newspaper, so that they can come in and curl up right in the centre of it.
Beautiful day here in NS. SamKitten’s down for a nap (he better be, considering he woke me up at 5am), and I’m going to go outside and do a bit of landscaping — hostas and bleeding hearts on the north side of the house, and some lilies of the valley back in the wooded part of our property (they spread like a bugger, so I want them relatively far away, but they smell soooo pretty that I still want some around so that I can pick them and bring them in the house.) Our lilac tree is starting to bud, as are the yellow rosebush and the variegated wegelia (sp?).
And tonight, lads, we grill steak! Mmm….
Linda Featheringill
I had a child [I still have her although she is no longer a child] who loved to lie in warm laundry and would track it down and lie in it.
With shoes with whatever on them.
[but she is still my child.]
Chad N Freude
Since this is an open thread: a city in the Phillipines has a rite of passage, not to mention an attempt to make the Guiness Book of World Records, that makes mass baptisms look pretty wimpy.
bemused
It only takes about 8 to 10 seconds for a cat with an upset stomach to locate one the few rugs on a wood floored room and puke on it. After decades of being woken in the middle of the night to the sound of cat gakking, we know from the number of pre-puking gak sounds, how much time we have to turn on the light to find the cat and either grab some paper towels from the kitchen to put under the kitty’s mouth (extremely rare) or move kitty off the rug just in the nick of time for vomit deposit on the bare floor.
Of course, most often by the time you have woken from a deep sleep, it is already too late and you step in the puke that’s on the rug with your naked feet and smoosh the puke into a bigger clean up job. Cat gak between your toes is the worst.
Amir_Khalid
Came home from the bookstore today with Brian Reade’s An Epic Swindle, the sad and sorry tale of Tom Hicks’ and George Gillette’s 44 months as owners of Liverpool FC. As a fan I can’t help but feel anger that this pair of moneyed lowlifes almost succeeded in destroying my club. But I’m also upset that the indifference and shortsightedness of the previous owner David Moore, coupled with club managing director Rick Parry being well out of his depth, helped deliver Liverpool into these bastards’ clutches.
CynDee
Um, if you’re still having trouble filling out your menu:
Pecan-garlic cheeseball with dark dark chocolate sauce and
crushedcursed salted cranberries. Phil told me to send this. It’s what he eats for breakfast but can be served anytime. The best thing about this dish is if you don’t do it.gex
Saw a “No Jesus, No Peace” bumper sticker yesterday, here in one of the hot spots in the culture wars. Is it just me, or does that sound like a threat? I read it as “Convert, Or Else!”
Is is 2013 yet?
fhtagn
@gex:
It might just mean that fake Christians and war are natural fuck-buddies.
Amir_Khalid
@Chad N Freude:
Ouch. I can still remember my own circumcision, 42 years ago, quite vividly — and not fondly.
JGabriel
AP via Chad N Freude:
That’s what they call a bloody cock-up.
.
Jazz Superluminar
yeah, Bob Marley really sucked during his brief born-again period.
Jazz Superluminar
@JGabriel
Win!
JGabriel
@Jazz Superluminar: Nicely done.
Edited to Add: Damn, simultaneous kudos. Guess that makes us a mutual admiration society.
.
WereBear
@bemused: You need my article:
Why Cats Throw Up in the Worst Places
We used to have a humidifier that would make THAT exact noise periodically. Drove me crazy, we gave it away.
Amanda in the South Bay
Getting ready to go to work for the first time since surgery, 8 days ago. I’m hoping I can make it through okay.
celticdragonchick: If you ever get an orchi, be sure to allocate enough time to recover. It can kick your ass.
suzanne
I am still trying to pick out paint colors for my living room. I’m leaning toward doing the perimeter walls in a soft aqua, with an accent wall in international orange.
Jazz Superluminar
I guess we could have a circle jerk, but my Koch’s sort of sore…
suzanne
@Amanda in the South Bay: Ahhhh, I’ve been wondering how you were doing—thx for the update!
And that wasn’t your ass it kicked. ;)
Hang in there.
Svensker
Truck arrived yesterday and we now have 400 boxes of books in the house. Not much house left, tho. Figuring out where to put them all is going to be a sumbeyotch.
Svensker
@Amanda in the South Bay:
Glad you’re progressing. Yikes.
Also, too, aren’t we all worried about what damage Cole will do to hisself while rushing around cleaning the house? Hope he at least has clothes on.
metalgirl
@suzanne: You will love it! I have taupe walls with lots of colorful accents (red couch, lots of colorful furniture and artwork). A few years ago, I painted the short wall (on the outside of the staircase) and the wall under the bar bright orange and it totally makes the room! It’s a very happy color — love it!
WereBear
@Amanda in the South Bay: My sympathies go out to you. Plan to do NOTHING when you get home!
p.a.
this is a test. previous comment never loaded, just disappeared into the cloud.
Amanda in the South Bay
@WereBear: hehe, I most definitely plan on doing that!
WereBear
@Svensker: I hear ya, said the renter of two storage units; about 75% books.
Boudica
@suzanne: All I can think of with that color combo is the Miami Dolphins….
suzanne
@Boudica: Since I don’t give two shits about football, that’s okay with me. :) I’m also thinking that the aqua would be a pale, muted shade. Still haven’t decided. Going to the paint store to get chips today.
gogol's wife
@WereBear:
That is a fabulous article. You even solved the “why do they always throw up on the fringe” conundrum.
Frank W.
Anybody listen to NPR this a.m.? I don’t know which story was more disturbing, the one about the May 21st judgment day whackos or the NRA’s efforts (and those of the complicit Republican lawmakers) to make it illegal to discuss the dangers of unattended firearms with soon-to-be parents.
Mark S.
Geez, that torture thread from a couple days ago is still going? Over 700 comments.
JGabriel
Krugman pegs the torturers:
Read the whole thing. It’s short, but demolishing.
.
Sean
Any plans to fix the “switch-to-desktop” link? I’m not a fan of the mobile version and so I have to repeatedly load the page on my droid phone until I slip through and get the full site. :-) I know it’s probably not your first prioriity but it’s driving me crazy. Thanks!
Amir_Khalid
@Mark S.:
Right now it’s mostly just people teasing ghanima_atreides and her reflexive responses. Tedious, very tedious.
Anya
Via Gawker, Boby Jindal released his birth certificate. His given name is “Piyush” and both his parents were born in India. I am guessing he will never win a republican primary. Also, too, does this mean all the brown politicians are now required to release their birth certificate? If so, who’s next, Nikki Haley?
vheidi
@Frank W.: just figured out AOR for my phone- hello BBC Worldservice, goodbye NPR.
suzanne
@Amir_Khalid:
I used to enjoy that myself. But she’s not funny anymore. Sigh.
Violet
@gex:
Riding my bike around the neighborhood a few days ago, I saw a giant yard sign with “Trump 2012” on it. Yes, for reals. It looked like an official sign, not just a home made one. Couldn’t decide if it was a true supporter or a joke.
RossInDetroit
@JGabriel:
I read the Krugman thing this morning. Yesterday he handed David Brooks his ass, so he’s in full Shrill Mode lately. Good. The Left needs more smart people making their arguments.
The opposition to torture seems to be making a comeback. If AQ settles down and there are no more terror attacks I hope we can revisit the Gitmo shutdown again soon.
Amir_Khalid
@Anya:
I’ve always wondered, why was Piyush “Bobby” Jindal nicknamed after a classic Bollywood movie?
WereBear
Oh, the joys of a Post Reality society!
Linda Featheringill
@Amanda in the South Bay:
orchi.
Are you trying to control the androgens in your body? I’m sorry.
eemom
anybody who wasn’t all America, fuck yeah over the OBL thing really needs to read this:
http://www.guernicamag.com/blog/2652/noam_chomsky_my_reaction_to_os/
see, this is what a whiny little wannabe like Greenwald WISHES he could do.
arguingwithsignposts
Not to be a downer, but damn, this made me weep. John Gorka – Let Them In.
JCT
I am still overwhelmed by the task of starting to clean out my home where I have lived for the past 20 years. Husband is abroad for a few weeks and left a very big box of industrial garbage bags behind. I think this was a hint.
I am, unfortunately a bit of a pack rat and a serious gear head. I think I have to suck it up and start tossing. Maybe I should make a nice stiff margarita and turn up some music. Yeah, there’s the ticket.
As I was typing this a big box arrived with Mother’s Day flowers — a nice guy my better half.
bemused
@WereBear:
Thanks for the explanation of why kitties head for the rugs. Not any less annoying but at least there is a good reason for it.
Now to explain why a previous cat chewed on fat extensions cords. To our horror, during a remodeling project we discovered the evidence of some vigorous chomping on more than one extension cord by our large male cat who lived on the edge indulging in many other risky behaviors. I don’t know how that cat didn’t die a bizarre, spectacular death several times over during his 12 years on earth. When he died suddenly of an aneurysm or heart attack we commented that we thought his end would much more dramatic.
Jazz Superluminar
@eemom
Why, it’s just like that, can’t you see? Yeah, GG’s definitely an amateur.
Valdivia
@Anya:
wow. why the hell did he do that? to prove he can live with the stupid birther law he said he would signed if passed by the legislature?
RossInDetroit
@Violet:
This yes please! Forget Palin. I want this colossal national joke front and center in 2012. Probably won’t happen, but the thought makes me happy. We Shall Overcomb indeed.
Valdivia
@eemom:
thanks for the link but, ugh. I really really didn’t want to read that.
Yutsano
@Valdivia: Actually IIRC the Arizona birfer law said that both parents had to be born here as well. Poor Piyush. He keeps trying to act like he’s not just a token dammit!
@Valdivia: A rare unforced error for Chomsky: he got the name of the operation wrong. The name I saw announced was Neptune’s Spear. But really nothing in there surprised me.
Valdivia
@Yutsano:
hey! how you? I’ve been thinking about you and your back since I maimed myself training for an Aqua-Velo last week. Been laid up without being able to move and thought you would sympathize :)
On topic, sorta, yes he came out just after that passed and said he would not veto it if he was presented with it. God what an idiot.
WereBear
@bemused: Thank you! This is my take on this common problem:
Their Thing for String
RedKitten
@Valdivia: I must need more sleep, for a moment I read that as you training for an Aqua-Velva…
Anya
@Valdivia: I think Piyush is dumber than he presents. He’s jumping on the crazy train without any reservation.
@Amir_Khalid: When he chose “bobby”, I think he was going for the all Americanness of the the Brady Bunch.
Yutsano
@Valdivia: I have told every single woman at work: if you’re gonna have (another) baby, TAKE. THE. DAMN. SHOT!! It worked wonders for me. But hopefully yours can be fixed with just drugs and rest.
I officially no longer know what Piyush is thinking. Louisiana is just multicultural enough to elect a non-white governor, but I have no idea how he could possibly win the rest of the South. He is an anchor baby after all.
@RedKitten: I just now realized that WordPress totally eted my comment, which sucks because it was a good joke about you and steak and Vikings. FYWP.
gex
@fhtagn: They are Christians. Either anyone who claims to follow Jesus is a Christian, or there are no Christians in the world. I can just as easily find someone who thinks your version of Christianity is fake.
And for what it is worth, these guys’ version is closer to how it has historically been practiced. While the kind of Christianity I prefer is indistinguishable from secular humanism.
Take your No True Scotsman arguments elsewhere. Finger pointing and yelling that others aren’t really Christians just leads us to arguing theology and isn’t helpful.
eemom
@Jazz Superluminar:
dunno, I thought he kind of had a point there. I’m the last person to do the Godwin thing, but I’ve always been kind of uncomfortable with that niggling historical technicality of genocide and land theft on which this “great country” of ours was built.
Mark S.
@RossInDetroit:
God Bobo’s column was shitty. Voters are selfish and democracy sucks. Only rich white men know what’s best for us.
There has never been a man in more need of a rusty pitchfork up his ass.
Valdivia
@RedKitten:
LOL. Actually that would require training. I am very sensitive to smell.
@Anya:
know someone who knows someone who went to school with him and the reports is that he is too earnest for words and dumber than a sack of rocks
Gravenstone
For the gamers in the crowd (and apologies if its been posted previously).
Roll a d6, apparently to the tune of Like a G6.
harlana
OT, but as some of you may now know, pentagon has released casual videos of bin Laden alive, taken by his staff. Andandand! did you know he dyed his beard?? Did you know he liked to watch himself on teevee? Did you know he dyed his beard and he liked to watch himself on teevee covered in a blanket??! Yes, if you don’t already know these fascinating details, tune to CNN now. Shocking, fascinating stuff! Can’t get enough. I had no idea he lived like a normal human being, it’s just staggering! If you don’t believe me, turn to CNN and watch him watching himself (with GRAY beard) on teevee and then see vids of him with the dyed beard! Yes, it’s really true! Revelation! andandand he dyed his beard and watched teevee with a GRAY beard, check it out! I need a bromide with some gin in it
Valdivia
@Yutsano:
So glad you’re feeling better.
I’ve been pretending to be made of porcelain for a week and it has paid off.Oh and also been high on pain killers all this time. Fun times! I will definitely be more careful when I go back to training not to clumsy my way into another injury. (BTW is I’m ever expecting I want to take the shot at least a month before I am due, just for the record.)
Re: Piyush, See previous comment.
Jazz Superluminar
@eemom
right, but you can’t see any moral difference between the actions and goals of the Nazis on the one hand, and those of Obama’s admin on the other? That’s what makes the comparison offensive, regardless of the unfortunate titles.
Yutsano
@Valdivia:
This is, almost to the letter, my younger brother’s exact description of Dino Rossi. I think it’s something they’re doing to the brains of the new generation of Republicans.
eemom
@Yutsano:
but wasn’t there some big fuss over it being called Geronimo?
Anyway. What did you think of the article? I’m kind of fixated on the “suspect” theme. Maybe some can enlighten me, but I never have known exactly what the hard evidence was that OBL was the mastermind of 9/11. Wasn’t KSM supposed to have been the mastermind? Or are there as many masterminds as there are al quaeda #2s?
Mark S.
Chomsky thinks the jury’s still out on whether al-Qaeda did 9-11?
Valdivia
@Yutsano:
Not surprising and totally agree. Fox news? Talk radio? Drinking the Kool-Aid? All could be causes right?
Also–can I blame the pain killers for all my typos today?
Yutsano
@eemom: Al Qaeda was understood to be a very hierarchal operation. (Keep in mind 9/11 was before they expanded and really franchised, so to speak.) Nothing major happened without Bin Laden’s approval. Unfortunately the actual evidence of what really happened evaporated because Dubya had to prove he was tuffer than his daddy and went all Marquis de Sade on the folks we did catch. So sorting wheat from chaff is difficult. The biggest piece of evidence was in fact his own admission. And AFAIK he never retracted or modified the fact that yes he ordered it to happen.
celticdragonchick
@Amanda in the South Bay:
Hope you are doing better, hon. :)
Valdivia
@Yutsano:
I would also add–the fact that he was seen to be the hero and mastermind and spiritual leader by his adepts and those who supported AQ.
licensed to kill time
@harlana:
Ha! Watching that right now, and my muttering at the screen is remarkably similar to what you just wrote ;)
eta: it’s just stunningly stupid coverage…my SO said Barbara Starr was getting rather creamy in the….well, ya know.
eemom
@Jazz Superluminar:
ah, I see what you’re getting at. Yes, come to think of it, the Native American genocide IS kind of irrelevant to going after OBL. And therefore kind of a gratuitous low blow. True.
I’m just kind of fascinated by Chomsky in general — an ancient wise man whose worldview consists of utter disdain and disgust for just about everything humankind has ever done. He must be a blast to have a beer with.
eemom
asked and answered
Stillwater
@Yutsano: The biggest piece of evidence was in fact his own admission. And AFAIK he never retracted or modified the fact that yes he ordered it to happen.
I remember it differently (tho don’t care enough to look it up): OBL categorically denied having been a part of the operation, but admitted he was pleased with the outcome. Even at the time of that specific report, people glided from the literal to the speculative as if no evidence of his guilt was required in any event.
ruemara
@eemom:
The fuss is that the code word for the kill was “geronimo”. Bin Laden’s code name was “jackpot”. It’s been completely misreported and no one is listening to anyone in the middle of their outrage.
eemom
@Yutsano:
well, you see what Chomsky does with that — says it’s more of a credit-grab than an admission.
meh. I dunno. And you’re right, now we will never know.
Comrade Luke
@WereBear:
This comes at an opportune time.
My cat has been grooming herself more than usual over the last couple of weeks, and I think she has a mega-hairball that she needs to get rid of. She hasn’t been eating as much over the last day or so, and she vomited a couple of times last night. It was nothing but bile and a little bit of hair.
Not sure what to do other than monitor the situation closely, and maybe let her go outside and chomp on some grass to help the process.
Any other suggestions?
Mark S.
@eemom:
No, he drinks the full glass of kool-aid:
Yutsano
@Stillwater: Now you’re making me dust off the memories. :)
As I remember, you’re right, at least initially OBL denied he was involved. Then like a couple years later (?) in an Al-Jazeera interview he did admit to giving KSM the go-ahead. At least that’s my recollection.
And I’m too lazy to do teh Google too. As far as I’m concerned it’s an academic point. Debating the legality of his death doesn’t make him any more alive.
@eemom: Hey waitaminute. You’re not supposed to object to yourself!
eemom
@Stillwater:
yeah….I remember one of those early videos where he was praising what “these young men” did, but not saying he told them to do it.
fhtagn
@Comrade Luke:
Have you felt her stomach to make sure there are no lumps or blockages? It might just be a hairball, but generally a major change in a cat’s eating habits is worth monitoring closely. You might consider taking her to the vet if she continues to not eat. You don’t want hepatic lipidosis on your hands.
Mark S.
Here’s a rundown of bin Laden statements after 9/11. I don’t know how exhaustive it is. I seem to recall some more unambiguous statements by OBL taking credit for the attacks.
Mark B
@Comrade Luke: The local pet store will have some hairball remedy stuff. It’s basically grease with some meat flavoring, and it helps them to either throw up or pass the hairball. I routinely give it to my cats a couple times a week during the spring. They like the taste, so it isn’t a problem getting them to take it, it comes in a toothpaste like tube and you put a bit on a finger and they eagerly lick it off.
Comrade Luke
@fhtagn: I just took her to the vet on Wednesday to get weighed (she’s been on a diet), and they didn’t mention anything. I’ll check though.
This crap always seems to happen on the weekend, when the vet’s closed.
opal
@harlana:
Yeah, but could he work the inside of the plate?
bemused
@WereBear:
That was good info too. All of our cats have liked stalking garter snakes but those snakes don’t get very big in our area. The cat that loved thick extension cords left all other cords like lamp cords alone. He never did anything in a small way.
fhtagn
@Comrade Luke:
It might also be worth getting some hairball remedy to help her. I used to have a tube of the stuff, purchased from PetCo., which had to be smeared on the cat’s paws and generally led to more bloodshed than the Thirty Years’ War. My blood, unfortunately.
Yutsano
@Mark S.: Thanks for that. It seems to conform more to how I recall things happening. And has the added bonus of making both Stillwater and I right. :)
Yutsano
Sigh. Random moderation. FYWP. I’m gonna go take a shower.
Mark B
Apparently my comment above about hairball remedy is awaiting moderation, but I second fhtagn’s comment above.
fhtagn
A slight change of topic, but as a blast from the past…
http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/05/poll-only-one-third-of-arizonans-approve-of-mccains-job-performance.php?ref=fpb
WereBear
@Comrade Luke: Hmmm, my first reaction is to make sure it’s a hairball.
If this is a pattern with her, you can add fat to her diet (I use bacon grease, they love it;) this will make getting rid of it easier no matter which way it goes, if you know what I mean.
Problem is, these symptoms could be indicators of a more serious illness; one that makes her nauseated. She could be grooming in an attempt to soothe herself. Cats will eat grass in an attempt to settle their tummy; whether it’s something normal, like a hairball, or something more serious.
Cat pancreatitis is on the rise. I’d check the article if you are concerned, and see if any of those symptoms ring a bell.
JGabriel
@harlana:
The entire corporate board of Clairol(tm) just bowed its head in despair and prayed, “Please, God, don’t let it be us. Worst. Celebrity. Endorsement. Ever.”
.
fhtagn
@JGabriel:
First Mitt Romney, and then Bin Laden. The hits just keep on coming, don’t they?
Mark B
@fhtagn: I’ve never had any issue getting my cats to take the hairball remedy. I spread a bit on one of my own fingers and they eagerly lick it off. They rather like the taste. I think trying to put it on the cat’s paws might be more painful for everyone involved.
WereBear
Crap. Are the ingredients high in grain and low in fat? If so, that’s bad news.
I realize now is a terrible time to get you worked up. Can she eat canned?
MikeJ
@Jazz Superluminar: Leaving aside the fact that no matter how much some would like to argue, the US isn’t Nazi germany, I don’t see anything offensive about naming weapons after great warriors. The Apache helicopter wasn’t named that too belittle native Americans, it was named that to honor them.
celticdragonchick
@eemom:
Temporary cease fire, so I can respond to the comment seriously…
Yes, I agree. At the same time, the problem extends much, much farther.
England: Genocide in Ireland under Cromwell. Irish population halved in ten years due to massive death tolls, imprisonment and deportation to slavery in Barbados. (also see some of the stuff about forced breeding programs with pubescent Irish girls and nuns. Bad stuff…although Nazi groups focused on the OH NOES!! Black slaves rapin’ the white girls!! instead of the systematic sexual abuse of African, Scottish and Irish women.)
England: First recorded example of mass rape as a tool of genocide in Scotland, 1745 after the Scottish defeat at Culloden(according to the UN) . Tens of thousands of Scots imprisoned and deported. Mass rapes of Scottish women and girls by Hanoverian troop. Mass executions of Scottish POW’s.
England: Tens of thousands killed, and systematic torture and sexual mutilation of prisoners in concentration camps during the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya. All records of torture and human rights violations destroyed.
Pakistan: Mass rape of women in Bangladsh, 1971 by Pakistani Army…also widely considered an example of genocide by rape.
Africa: Too many examples to even discuss…
Turkey: Armenian genocide. First systematic mass killings of the 20th Century.
Ottoman Empire: Lots of bad things, including widespread slavery and sexual mutilation of men and women, mass killings of civilians in Greece, British Isles and even Iceland(!), use of women as sexual chattel…
Japan: Mass murder in China on a truly preposterous scale in WW II, including the Rape of Nanking. Deaths in China probably in the millions, but will never be known. Also, widespread enforced sexual slavery of women from China, Formosa, Korea, Russia, Australia, Indonesia, The Netherlands and elsewhere. Women euphemistically known as “Comfort Women”. Japanese crimes against women have never been admitted to or apologized for, and the lawsuits have dragged out for decades without resolution…
Belgium: Enslavement of native populations in African colonies for forced labor. Amputations and executions for not meeting work quotas…
These are just a few in the long and sad history of human butchery, and our country is a part of it. Most countries are, to some extent. I let my blood pressure get the better of me sometimes when I dwell on it, but I eventually accept that it happened, and try to hope that maybe we will do better.
Maybe.
Fucen Pneumatic Fuck Wrench Tarmal
@gex:
it sounds like an opportunity for a well placed k and w.
Roger Moore
@Comrade Luke:
Petromalt. Seriously. It’s the one medicine cats will come running to take, and it really works.
JCT
@Yutsano: On one of the tapes he also made a point to say that the “20th hijacker”, Moussaoui (sp) was not involved in 9/11 — can’t remember the details, but his vouching for him was thought to be more evidence of OBLs direct involvement.
opal
@fhtagn:
Petromalt? Some cats seem to love that stuff.
Mine won’t go near it.
Fucen Pneumatic Fuck Wrench Tarmal
@Anya:
when boehner released his birth certificate it revealed that his father was a piece of whole wheat toast that slipped off his mother’s plate.
WereBear
@opal: It’s flavored mineral oil; any source of fat would do as well.
Some cats go nuts for coconut oil; I’m using that lately for my senior, 15 year old cat, and it seems to help him a lot.
Comrade Luke
@WereBear:
I had her on dry food – low cal, high carb – and she was not only not losing weight, she was a borderline diabetic. I switched her to high-protein, canned food a couple of months ago and since then she’s lost over a pound (she’s down to 12lbs, about to cross to the 11s).
As part of weighing her at the vet they also took some blood, and the doctor called on Thursday to say her blood sugar levels have dramatically decreased, to normal levels and now no longer in the diabetic range. What a relief.
I’m assuming they would have noticed something when they did the blood work, but who knows.
I’ll just keep checking her over the next few hours to see if anything weird’s going on. I just guided her to her dish and she started eating, so that’s a good sign.
fhtagn
The one thing cats always seem to love is the grease on the plates after a pizza. I suspect bacon fat, as suggested earlier, might work rather well too.
WereBear
@Comrade Luke: How awesome! You are doing exactly the right things!
Your experience with the dry food is what so many put up with when the vet says the cat needs to lose weight.
I feel so relieved! Since she’s also just had a checkup, your first diagnosis is certainly looking like the right one.
MikeJ
@fhtagn: I have a cookbook by Thomas Keller of French Laundry fame. In one recipe he calls for bacon fat, but helpfully adds that if you don’t have any, duck fat will work just as well.
fhtagn
@Comrade Luke:
Also too, if you have some tuna in oil, try giving her some of the oil on a saucer.
AliceBlue
@Mark B:
The stuff’s called Laxatone and my kitties love it. It’s like kitty heroin or something. I used to put some on the end of my finger and let them lick it off until I almost lost it (the finger).
fhtagn
@AliceBlue:
I wonder if it works on teabaggers. Is this how Glenn Beck and the Kochs got them onto the buses?
gogol's wife
@AliceBlue:
Yeah, Laxatone. My previous batch of cats loved it. My present three cats won’t come near it. It has a tuna smell and strangely enough, they’re not interested in tuna.
Maude
@gogol’s wife:
I used Petromalt for the kitty years ago and it did prevent hair balls.
Don’t know if they’ll like it.
Rihilism
@eemom: Thanks for the link. Although I don’t always agree with him, I find his perspectives interesting. The thing that seems to me to be missing from his “take” is the notion that OBL financed AQ (I suppose it’s possible that our government lied to us about this). Even if OBL didn’t approve a particular operation, isn’t he responsible for AQ in the first place?
I’m not implying that this justifies assassination, but I’m still not convinced that what we did is assassination because I’m still not convinced that the actions that were taken were anything other than situational (i.e., they weren’t even sure that OBL was there let alone how any of the “suspects” would respond to their infiltration). Also, claims regarding the legality/illegality of this action seem to center around subjective definitions of “enemy combatant”. Although I think we should continue asking questions, at this point I’m still somewhat comfortable with the definition that it was legal to kill (as opposed to assassinate) OBL.
MikeJ
@Rihilism: It’s always been legal under the laws of every country and international law to kill stateless hostiles. They were usually called “pirates”, but they were viewed as a threat to all countries and the penalty was usually death on the spot, no trial needed.
Mark B
@gogol’s wife: Either Petromalt and Laxatone should work the same. I swear I’ve seen it in a couple of different flavors, but not recently. If you can’t get the cat to eat the stuff by itself, you could try wrapping a glob of it in a cold cut. Cold cuts aren’t great for cats, but a little bit won’t be terrible.
Any highly greasy food should do the trick if they’ll eat it.
soonergrunt
@eemom: There was the whole thing with him taking credit for it on video and audio tape. Multiple times.
Just sayin’
soonergrunt
@ruemara:
Oh, now, that NEVER happens!
Punchy
Oh where oh where is ppGAZ to argue this travesty with me?
I smell a lawsuit. A very easy, winnable one.
soonergrunt
@MikeJ: To say nothing of the fact that all US helicopters are named for Native American tribes and only named with the tribe’s permission.
I don’t know how Chomsky has lived this long, what with his life being a perpetual outrage machine. Most people would have had an MI by now. He must work out like a motherfucker.
The recent Onion article about him
Fucen Pneumatic Fuck Wrench Tarmal
hey, wait, has jindal finished his rebuttal to obama’s first state of the union, the effort was so plodding and deliberate i kind of stopped paying attention.
eemom
@Rihilism:
OTOH, apparently it’s not just Chomsky who is questioning whether he could have been taken alive, and whether that was ever part of the plan:
http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2011/05/06/u-n-watchdogs-seek-details-of-raid-on-bin-laden-compound/
Also, I keep coming back to the point I was harping on the other day, which is that the example of Israel and Eichmann proves that even the most heinous criminal can receive a fair trial. (Although I also acknowledge that what was possible in Israel in 1961 is likely not possible in 2011 clusterfucked USA.)
Looking at the wiki page Mark S. linked to above, I notice how they’re careful to say that all the recordings of OBL admitting responsibility are “ALLEGEDLY” recordings of OBL. That’s one of the things a trial court does: resolves those tedious and mundane questions of whether evidence is authentic or not, BEFORE it is relied on to determine guilt or innocence.
Tim, Interrupted
Cole, you are so gay.
jeffreyw
Mmm…soup and sammich for lunch.
Yutsano
@jeffreyw: I see you are getting maximum mileage out of the mustard experiment. Has wifey bugged you to send her a jar yet?
Badtux
locate and lie in clean laundry in under 18 seconds.
Which is why my laundry goes straight from dryer to laundry basket to closet and drawers with no lollygagging around. But the kittehs do make sure that it’s properly pre-furred before going into the washing machine!
Meanwhile, 2/3rds of the floors in my home are tile or vinyl. The remainder has a large variety of throw rugs over a good portion of the carpet. The cats, of course, ignore the tile and vinyl portion and the throw rugs. Instead they puke up their hairball-and-kibble steaming piles upon the portions of carpet visible, then attempt to haul the throw rugs onto the steaming piles. Cats. Heh.
– Badtux the Cat-owned Penguin
eemom
@soonergrunt:
he doesn’t get worked up though. Have you ever watched an interview with him? It’s not so much “outrage” as a kind of quiet, understated — yet pure and profound — disgust, founded upon an utter and complete conviction of what a worthless shitstain the human species has wrought upon the face of the planet.
That’s why I think he’d be cool to have a beer with. : )
Amir_Khalid
@Punchy:
The pilot wanted those two imams off his plane because their clothing wasn’t American style. Someone should point out to him that the 19 hijackers on 9/11 were all in typical American attire (and clean-shaven too) so as not to attract suspicion.
eemom
@soonergrunt:
oh yes, I’ve seen that before. Tee hee.
jeffreyw
@Yutsano: Nope, but EPU has been asking.
Susan Kitchens
Rick Santorum: Obama did not get Osama.
Commenters:
and
What else DID NOT happen?
Yutsano
@Susan Kitchens: Wow. Isn’t Santorum a lawyer? Did he sleep through the discussion where the legal concept of CONSPIRACY was discussed? Jeez that was stupid even for him.
opal
@Punchy:
Keeping kids off his lawn with one of those newfangled machines.
MikeJ
@eemom: Eichmann committed his crimes as a citizen and member of the government of an internationally recognized state. bin Laden did not. bin Laden did not commit war crimes since only states can declare war. He was a stateless person acting under no lawful authority. He was a pirate.
Calouste
@eemom:
It takes Chomsky only until the second sentence to put in an obvious lie. I stopped reading at that point.
Roger Moore
@Yutsano:
You’re seeing the Republican Noise Machine in defensive mode. When they’re on the attack, they’ll all repeat the same focus group tested blather. When they’re on the defensive, they start out with a whole bunch of different ideas and only start repeating the same thing when they think they’ve found one that will work. Right now they’re still in throwing shit against the wall to see what sticks mode, which inevitable results in a certain amount of incredibly stupid flailing. My gut tells me they won’t find a decent response before the next big news item hits.
Valdivia
@Roger Moore:
I tend to agree with this. Just saw at TPM that asshole Andrew Card (he of the Obama goes to the Oval Office like it was a gym because he takes his jacket off fame) is saying Obama is prideful and chest thumping too much about OBL. So I guess we’re back to the uppity thing.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Valdivia:
Christ, I never heard that one. Their obsession with the jacket is like running into a brick wall. How do you even talk to people this stupid?
Valdivia
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
I know. And now Card who orchestrated Mission Accomplished says Obama is chest thumping? Wha??
Roger Moore
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
It’s not stupidity that makes him say shit like that, it’s being a dickhead. And my solution to dealing with people who are raging dickheads like that is to avoid talking to them- or listening to them- as much as possible. Too bad the press can’t follow along.
MikeJ
@Valdivia: Yes, having your jacket off in the oval is disrespectful.
Anne Laurie
@bemused:
Some years ago, a friend’s Afghan hound required extensive oral surgery after he chewed on electrical wires he could only reach by worming his sighthound body under furniture & into a crawlspace that should’ve been inaccessible. I mentioned this during a pause at a dog-training class, and my classmate the oral surgeon (& cattle dog owner) said he’d sent his kids through college repairing toddlers’ mouths after they did the same thing!
According to him, some little kids got ‘hooked’ on the mild electric shock & it could be a very difficult habit for their parents to keep them from indulging. And, yeah, sometimes it took a near-fatality, after the insulation got chewed off enough, to alert the elders as to why Junior’s gums were suddenly receding. If the sensation is that addicting for a pre-verbal house ape, I can understand why it would be just as tempting for a small carnivore…
Yutsano
@Anne Laurie:
STOLED!!
fhtagn
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/blogs/taibblog/loony-ass-insurgents-vs-waffling-bores-gop-presidential-fight-starts-tonight-20110505
Matt Taibbi may have his faults, but he’s nailed Pawlenty but good here.