Couch Reno

It might have been Two, however I think it was more likely Binx, but at some point one of the corners of the couch got torn up. This couch has been around forever, I think it was at Rrunuv Bayit for most of the time and has been at Casa Verde since we moved in. My parents got it for our family room in Paris when I was a teenager, maybe even a pre-teen. The issue with the torn up corner is that it is right as you enter the room! It is the main corner, very visible. 

I figured you could get patches but I wanted stick on ones, not iron on ones, and they needed to be large enough, strong enough to work with a couch. I eventually came across some faux leather ones that you heat up with a hair dryer before sticking on. There were tons of colours so I was able to get a beige that coordinated with the blue and cream couch stripes. I cut a custom shape that so it would tuck under the first fold of the arm and then wrap around the corner with the the other three corners rounded (recommended in the instructions, also looks nicer.)

So that it didn't look as much like a patch and more like a purposeful part of the furniture I made sure to get and make enough to do both corners on the couch and over on the chair-and-a-half so that everything matched. After I finished I asked Jason if he noticed anything new in the living room, and he had about 6 wrong guesses before I just gave up and pointed at the patches. He thinks this shows how well they blend in and is not continued proof of how unobservant he is.

Looks like our living room furniture has little leather elbow pads, like on tweed academic blazers/sweaters. I am very happy with the refresh and hope that it will continue to extend the life of this couch because I don't want to replace it anytime soon.

Grrrr Two

The cat has cost us over $1,200 this month! That is just medically, not even looking at food or litter.

It started early in September with a scheduled surgery - she has these strange Cutaneous Horns on her paw pads and they had reached a size that I decided to get them cut off/back.

Cutaneous horns are composed of keratin overgrowth. They may affect one or multiple footpads. Often thin and horn-like (hence the name), they may appear like second "nails" close to the nails on the digital pads. If not on a weight bearing surface, these lesions usually do not cause lameness. Cutaneous horns may be spontaneous, and this is often the case on the footpads. If the horns are not causing lameness the lesions are often ignored. The horny growth can removed by trimming, however, the horns will often recur. Horns causing discomfort should be removed and, if it is possible to do so without causing a large pad defect, the base of the lesion should be excised to prevent regrowth. -- DMV360 

They have be growing for years and were never something I felt comfortable trimming myself. This summer they reached a length that was bothering her when we were trimming her claws. I decided to have her into the vet for surgery and get them cut them down (they weren't able to dig everything out to prevent regrowth and they are already regrowing, but it helped). Also had them clean her teeth at the same time. That was $585 and she went in for it about a month ago.

Then a couple of weeks ago, I got concerned about a mark I noticed on her bum, because Binx had an abscess issue once that was awful. After a $85 examination it was determined to just be a scratch and I was told to watch it for the next couple of weeks but that it would just heal up and go away - it did.

Last night she tore a claw - another trip into the vet. She did it back in December too but I don't think we caught it right away back then because the fur around it was all clumped together. In December the vet had a hard time determining the issue, having to cut back the fur first. Last night we noticed it quickly (just by chance because both times she was walking fine) and I took her in this afternoon. They treated it and it cost $610. In December, it had been $470. The difference was that they didn't sedate her last time. I guess by the time they had trimmed and cleaned the fur she was in enough distress that they just cut back the claw, cleaned it up and gave her antibiotics. We weren't given a choice in the method at the time, she was taken to another room and treated. This time the vet explained that style to be a bit more 'down on the farm' and while it was an option since this time he could see everything and knew what needed to be done - sedation and pain killers were recommended. Of course I agreed, I hate pain why would I make the cat suffer.

Basically this rant isn't about the cost of veterinary services - because while they are more expensive in The City, it is an understandable increase for more expensive rent etc. Across all vet practices I find the costs are almost always worth it - I value the expertise and care. Mainly this is a rant at the fact that my particular cat keeps costing me money, or that it has all been concentrated recently. Luckily she is cute!

Follow Two's life in her own words with photos on Instagram - @twodeecat

Panda Wants Tessa To Stay Home

It is so hard to take a good photo of a black cat, I remember the challenge from the years of having Binx. Tessa got a beautiful one of Panda yesterday as she packed for the weekend Bachelorette (mine!) trip up to Collingwood.

Please Don't Go Mommy

Panda Prevents Packing 

Photo by Tessa

Throw Back Post - Binx And Mice

In a follow up to the last post, here are some stories of Binx and her fun with mice over the years:
- Mouse Crisis
- Mouse Crisis, Part Two
- CRISIS, Mouse Crisis, Part Three
- Mouse Crisis, Part Four (She ignored it in this one.)
- Mouse Crisis, Part Five

And this cute one of Two
- An Urban Mouse Catcher
According to Aunty Laura, Rusty also likes to play with computer mice and hides her's under the furniture.

Hopefully A Killer?

The same comic who created How to tell if your cat is plotting to kill you has a more recent post about how much cats actually kill. His observations stem from research done with attached cameras on house cats. The researchers found that one in three cats killed prey. Be sure to read the piece - it is really funny, in a scary way.

It has me wondering about Two though - will she be the one in three that is capable of killing? (Binx was.) The research seems to have followed house cats that were allowed to hunt outside, and I am curious what the numbers would be for indoor cats and their interactions with mice? Two hasn't experienced any mice yet because we don't have any at Rrunuv Bayit. Sometimes she tries to follow a small spider around but in general this apartment doesn't have mice, bugs or pests.

Casa Verde will be a different story though. We have found evidence of mice in the basement during our demo processes. So far we haven't seen any but with a house that old it will definitely be something we'll have to deal with at some point. I hope that Two is helpful but at the same time it is so awful to hear and find a cat's 'kill' that I almost wish that she would turn out to be the type to ignore them. Hopefully just her presence will be enough - all mice can just go find a cat-free house to live in.

Pantherday

------- from The Internet

Taylor sent this to me a while back. I always used to say that Binx looked like a panther. Also, I hate that I now know that "panthers" aren't even really a thing! It is just the darkest colour variant in Leopards and Jaguars. So Binx was a mini-panther and Two is a tiny-tiger.

Instructions From The Cat

For Christmas I gave Aunty Laura a little book called "A Cat's Little Instruction Book." She recently emailed some of her favourite quotes from it, these ones remind me why I wish I was a cat:

Long naps never go out of fashion. 

When depressed or confused try lying on your back with your legs in the air: sometimes the world just looks better upside down. 

Find any excuse to run up and down the stairs dementedly.

When in doubt, let your tail do all the talking for you.

If someone breaks into the house when no one else is home, don't be a hero. Leave the heroics to dogs.

Cat Tweets

--------- from Twitter (collected by Buzzfeed)


For my cat's birthday I'm covering my coffee table with change, bottle caps, pens & gum wrappers so he can just knock it all onto the floor.


How To Know If Your Cat Hates You
1. You own a cat
2. I'm sorry but you just need to accept this


My cat is playing with her tail and I'm bored with a device that gives me access to infinite knowledge.


*me petting my cat*
CAT: This is the happiest I will ever be
*a door opens*
CAT: Now is my chance to flee this prison and never return


How dare you call me mentally unstable, on this, the day of my cat's quinceanera.

Kittens In Your Face

Another list, like the one I put up a few weeks ago. This one is about cat's ignoring your personal space. Binx would sit beside you so wasn't that invasive, and Rasta isn't super intrusive. However, Two is pretty bad about this, she is all over everyone all the time.

-------- found online

Not my photo - Found online

Check out the MASSIVE list of examples HERE

Cat Logic

------ found online (from Tessa)

Not my photo - Found online

Check out the HUGE list of hilarious examples HERE.

Business Cat

Great comic! The Adventures of Business Cat by Tom Fonder:

Go HERE to see a cute list of situations that are all too familiar to cat owners.

Cat T-Shirt

I love this shirt, it is so cute. I think my Aunty Laura gave it to me (or maybe Grandma.) It is so old though and I should probably get rid of it soon. Luckily it is really high quality for a t-shirt, nice and thick, so it has lasted well. It is currently used as a comfortable option to lounge around the house or sleep in. I got it years and years ago, when I was a kid. The black cat was because I had Binx at the time. When cats clean their toes it is my favourite thing. So funny, so interesting, and so cute!

A Catuday Cheer Up

------------------- from Tessa (from The Internet)

As I mentioned, it has been a bit of a rough week. To cheer me up on Thursday, Tessa sent me a couple of memes (which she pronounces 'me.me' even though I am pretty sure it is 'meem') to cheer me up. I thought I would share this one for Caturday because I totally love it.

Taco Cat has so many things I love:
- Tacos, one of my favorite meals
- Kittens, this cat is tiny and possibly still a baby
- Black Cat, still my favorite because of Binx
- Palindrome, something that is the same forward as backwards
Basically this is the perfect thing to send me to cheer me up! I have amazing friends.

TB - Caturday

Instead of a Throw Back Thursday, I thought I would do a bit of a cat themed TB today.

Check out these Always Standing links:

First Mention of Binx: Early In The Morning? 

First Post About Two (she wasn't named yet): Kitten Test Drive

First Mention of Two: Introducing You To Two

Listen To Bob

Bob Barkers famous sign off at the end of Price Is Right was, "Help control the pet population. Have your pets spayed or neutered." Well, Mom listened and (almost reluctantly) had Rasta neutered a couple of weeks ago. You can see some post-surgery pictures of him in her recent blog post, he looks the same as before - adorable. I never thought twice about getting pets fixed, both Binx and Two were spayed. I was never concerned about it, even though it is expensive (more so for female animals than males). I feel like it is an important part of responsible pet ownership. So to anyone with a new pet or considering one in the future, remember to budget in this important procedure.

I Have Said These Things

Buzzfeed is an amazing site if you are looking to waste a lot of time on the internet. For the past couple of months I have been borderline addicted. Nicola was the first of my friends to really check the site and she got Kristen going and then it was only a matter of time before I too would be regularly reading their funny lists. Whenever I see a good wedding-related list I forward it onto Teri, and whenever Kristen sees things about cats she forwards them to me. She sent me the following list last week and I thought I would share it today as part of Caturday:

22 Conversations Every Cat Owner Has Had With Their Cat
 My favourites:
"Am I allowed to pet you now?"
"What the fuck are you doing?"
"You know, I was reading that."

The cool thing about the list linked to above is that it is a 'community post' which means instead of the staff at Buzzfeed, it was put together by someone who just likes to make lists.

GamerPic

Mike got Jason (and I) a second controller for the Xbox One so we can play multiplayer on some of the games. I enjoy The Xbox but in general have always shied away from console gaming because I never used them as a kid; I don't have the coordination or muscle memory to use controllers very well. (I am a PC gamer.) Jason is trying very hard to get me to like his new toy - it isn't as though I hate it, or begrudge any time he spends playing it, I just don't use it. He first got me Peggle 2, which I admit is super addictive, and then for Christmas gave me Forza Motorsport 5, seeing that I love cars it was a good choice and I am really liking it. I decided it was time to get a Xbox identity:

Be my friend on Xbox Live: 

Chris Tine BINX

A Timeless Tail

Today was the third day in a row that I brought Two to the office with me. I don't know if it was the fact that I was already in a bad mood, but she drove me crazy all day! Tomorrow I am going to take a break from her and even though it will make work a bit more lonely I plan to leave her at home. I will bring her in again on Friday. Cats being a bother is not a new thing...

 

Inky paw prints presumably left by a curious kitty on a 15th century manuscript. This reminds me of Binx's blog post and Two helping me with my thesis.

You Will For Sure Die

This is very funny. (Thank you to Nicola for sending it to me):

Sad Cat Diary

"I would like to receive two rubs exactly, a third one and I will bite the shit out of them, as per protocol" Unfortunately with Two, this desired number/protocol changes constantly so we never know how much she would like and, well, then she bites us.

Life Is Better With A Cat

----- from Facebook