Some pictures from the ride down:
And of course a bonus shot of Sam:
The house we are staying in is my cousin Jody’s, and she has spectacular taste in furniture- lots of antiques everywhere. It’s weird- even though we are a block from the beach, we are surrounded by live oaks and foliage, but get a surprising amount of sun.
And the master bedroom is up internal stairs and you look down into the kitchen, dining room, and living room:
Also, Gerald is watching Thurston and Rosie and Steve, and I received this report:
Welcome to my world, Gerald.
Dorothy A. Winsor
What a beautiful place. Have a great time.
gammyjill
You brought Steve on a road trip? Was he confined to a carry case?
Steeplejack
@gammyjill:
Steve is back home with Gerald.
OzarkHillbilly
Waiting for your “Long Reads” post John. Not complaining, just taking advantage of the opportunity to tell you I’m a fan of them.
gammyjill
@Steeplejack: Thanks. It was a bit confusing. It’s just that i wouldn’t have been surprised it Steve was along.
chris
@OzarkHillbilly: Long(ish) read? This spoke to me, sadly.
wvng
Thanks for the update and pictures of your good girl. Also, two of our cats use the door knocker to ask to come in.
TaMara (HFG)
Sure looks like fun! And extra beach time! Is everyone fitting in the same car on the way home or did you bring Tammy along to drive your parents’ car? I suppose four dogs, four people isn’t impossible. ‘Cause of course they aren’t my sized dogs. LOL
We piled three of us and the dogs in my new car and all I heard from my niece was, “Scout, you’re squishing me!”
Mnemosyne
“Your cat knocks like a human.”
Well, I’m dead. ?????
Steeplejack
@gammyjill:
Cats don’t travel well (in my experience, at least).
OzarkHillbilly
@chris: Thx, don’t have time now, but I’ve bookmarked it for later.
RobertDSC-Mac Mini
That first pic is the definition of precious cargo.
TaMara (HFG)
Speaking of pets – anyone seen a small slide that DOESN’T have steps? I’d like to do something for the ducks…they love to slide down the ramp from the nesting box to the ground. I thought they’d enjoy something similar for their pools.
geg6
Cleo knocks by throwing a hard plastic toy against the door. We still have to keep her separated from Lovey (Koda couldn’t possibly care less) if we aren’t in the room so she lets us know when she wants out of “her” room. And then we must hang out and do nothing else until she’s had enough of Lovey growling at her. It’s either that or hear the toy banging on the door incessantly. Animals, what can you do? Hopefully, Cleo will gain some more weight and be better able to kick Lovey’s ass soon.
Gin & Tonic
I thought the consensus was that room was pink
debbie
@TaMara (HFG):
Maybe lash two kids’ slides back to back? Or would the trip up be too steep? Or maybe planks of wood for the trip up?
kindness
Too cute! I always thought having two critters together is easier. They entertain each other when you’re distracted.
rikyrah
Sam is so cute ?
The pictures of the dogs were adorable ?
The text has me LOL.
I believe him, and though previous pictures had lulled me into a different place… I am back to being afraid of Steve.??
Have a good time, Cole ?
ruemara
@TaMara (HFG): a wooden plank that’s been shellacked with a good waterproofing lacquer should work. Barring that, get custom cut glazing plastic.
My apartment is full of last minute visitors, so I’m trapped in my room, since they were out partying while I got some sleep. But I grow… hungry.
germy
Immanentize
Your Dad looks like he is sittin’ pretty. Nice. (But could your parents sit further apart?)
germy
@Steeplejack:
I remember one nightmarish day when I tried driving my cat to a vet appointment. Somehow she got out of her pet carrier in the back seat, jumped onto the front seat, then worked her way down to the ignition and brake pedal. For a brief moment she was under the brake pedal.
Now we have a vet who makes housecalls.
Immanentize
@germy: I’ve always disliked the DCCC. This kind of move will hasten their collapse. Plain up incumbent protection. Obvious insult to AOC. Actually creates space for new firms to take up those causes.
germy
The TV is on right now. My wife is watching a Mo Rocca TV show about inventors. Rocca just told us that the inventor of the Go Pro camera funded himself by selling sea shell jewelry.
“Surely that’s bullshit,” I wondered, so I checked wikipedia:
I love the narrative that Rocca and Nick push in their shows and origin stories. That these are humble people who built empires from humble beginnings… and why can’t you?
innovation Nation is the name of the Mo Rocca show.
Aleta
This fucking old nail
Mason bee pulling a nail out of a hole in the wall!
Steeplejack
@germy:
That’s too bad. Rocca’s show My Grandmother’s Ravioli is very good.
stinger
What a great house! Full of pets, parents, and sunlight. I’m envious.
Ohio Mom
@Aleta: That was surprisingly suspenseful.
It’s lovely to see signs of spring everywhere, and I include parental migrations north in that category. All of us survived winter once again.
biff murphy
gals to see your dad up and around and back on the intertubes john, best biff
TaMara (HFG)
@Aleta: Why do I think that would be the equivalent of you or I pulling a car out of the garage with our bare hands?
Nicole
Lovely photos! It was 35 degrees in NYC when I left the apartment to go to a cycling class (trying so, so hard to get back into shape). And then the cycling teacher added insult to injury by opening a window RIGHT BEHIND ME during the class because she, at the other end of the room, was hot.
Oh spring, please be sprung soon.
On the bright side, the 8-year-old has a sleepover tonight so the better half and I can go see Us. Cannot. Wait.
TaMara (HFG)
@Steeplejack: Don’t be too hard on Mo – it’s a children’s show and that is the common mythology of GoPro. They are quite transparent about how funding is raised and how difficult it can be to invent something (often showing the many iterations and talking about the years of hard work.)
One of my favorite episodes is the guy who invented the supersoaker.
ETA: And yes, I watch it a lot, usually while cleaning on Sat morning.
Amir Khalid
@germy:
Goodness gracious. A pet loose in the driver’s footwell is a nightmare I hope I never experience.
germy
@Amir Khalid: We both had a good laugh about it afterward.
Mary G
Is the JRT behind your dad Ginny or Guesly? (spelling unsure). Your dad looks in great shape.
Ed_finnerty
What breed or cross is Sam.
Asking because I have a stray off the street that looks the same and don’t know what he is.
stinger
@Ed_finnerty: Sam looks quite a bit like my Yorkie (Yorkshire Terrier) mix, Josie. And Lily is like a larger, sweeter Murray. Steve is almost a dead ringer for my Gina. That leaves Thurston, who only resembles my Oliver in being a pain in the neck.
jamey
@Nicole: Try it on outdoors on a road, instead. With actual resistance and changing scenery, 35-degrees feels good as long as you’re properly attired for the task.
Aleta
Story of one medical alert dog, owner-trained. The whole story is at addisons dot org. (Posting link below.)
Aleta
Link to the dog and trainer story: https://www.addisons.org.uk/articles.html/personal-experience-life-stories/living-with-an-alert-dog-rhea-and-jan’s-story-r383/
Ed_finnerty
@stinger: hi
What is it mixed with.
Most people think mine is a poodle and Wheaton terrier
Paul T
IOP is fun. I know it is a big slog, but the view from the top of the Ravenel Bridge is nice…kinda big hike to get there, though. And Patriot’s Point (ironical name for a spot that was probably a Confederate stronghold) has interesting things to see. The Submarine Memorial is a nice walk around spot.
MelissaM
That picture of Sam! I’m ded.
Renie
The picture of the two dogs sleeping in the dog bed together is adorable.
Kirk Spencer
@Steeplejack: I’ve had three different cats that liked to ride in the car. I don’t know for certain the reasons, but some items for others’ expansion:
– Their first three car rides with me were somewhere either innocuous or even with a reward at the end. A treat from the vet is not a reward.
– Two of the three started as kittens.
– all three rode out of cage/carrier. The first time was not intentional and was the cat that did not start as a kitten. She was one of “my cats”. I’m driving along and suddenly realize there’s a cat on the platform under the back window, lazing in the sun and sneering at the people in vehicles behind me.
YMMV, but I now /try/ to see if the problem is simply the nausea caused by inner saying you’re moving vs eyes saying you’re standing still.
John Cole
@Ed_finnerty: Sam is a morkie- maltese and yorkshire mix.
debbie
@germy:
Here’s a much funnier Mo Rocca “story” about the March Sisters Madness (starts at 4:40).
debbie
@Aleta:
Love the “Good lad!”!
Nicole
@jamey: 1) I have rosacea, so outdoor cardio in the cold weather is murder on my skin, and 2) the teacher for this class sets everything to 1970s-1990s music, so this Gen-Xer finds herself peddling with a LOT of enthusiasm.
Steeplejack
@Kirk Spencer:
I was also thinking about once you reach the destination. Every cat I’ve ever had would freak out, or at least be very nervous, about a “new environment” and would probably spend the whole visit hiding out.
The housecat is old and set in her ways. Better to leave her at home and have the cat wrangler visit every day.
Gammyjill
@Steeplejack: Exactly. I have two of my own who loathe the car and have to literally be stuffed in their carry cases. That’s why I was shocked at the thought of Steve in a car.
stinger
@Ed_finnerty: Hi, sorry — I went away for a while!
Both a Wheaten Terrier and a Standard Poodle would be too big to make a dog about the size of Sam and my Josie, who weighs 11 pounds (Sam looks pretty similar). Josie came from a puppy mill, where she was undoubtedly used to breed Yorkies for sale, but she had no papers that I know of. So I just call her “Yorkie mix” since I don’t know whether she’s a purebred or not.
John Cole says above that Sam is a “morkie”. Like Yorkies, Maltese are what’s known as Toy breeds, which are all quite small. To guess at unknown parent breeds, you need to consider height, weight, coat type and color, head shape, ear carriage, and a whole lot of other characteristics. But really, none of that matters unless you are “showing” a dog in AKC competitions.
Thank you for taking in a stray!
Ruckus
Haven’t seen Isle of Palms in almost 50 yrs. It wasn’t much then. Has it been built up much since?
Leto
@Nicole: Avalune and I saw “Us” yesterday and it was really good. Left us both with tons of stuff to chew over and explore. Peele is very good at layering many messages about various subjects. Hope you enjoy it!
Aleta
@Kirk Spencer: I’ve had a couple of cats who out and out enjoyed the car. With one, normally territorial and anxious at home, I thought maybe the vibration settled her down? She also liked to look out the window. Maybe she had good motion-processing? Some kind of good coordination between her visual processing and equilibrium responses(?) perhaps?
I remember she also seemed to know, when we still a few miles from home, that we were getting close to arriving back.
Juju
@Immanentize: I thought it was cute that John’s parents dressed very similarly.
Atticus Dogsbody
Don K
We had a cat who learned to knock on the bedroom window when he was out overnight and wanted to come in. I would wake up at 3 in the morning to the sound of a cat knocking near where he knew we were to come in and sleep. I decided that was one smart cat who could figure that out.