Tag Archives: Pets

[Tag] Page 123, 6-8 and then Five

Posted on by

I knew, once I started reading that I’d be tagged.

So… it makes sense that the closest book is the one I’m currently reading. No, it’s not Lord of the Rings. That’s at home, though having one of my half a dozen or so copies here at work isn’t a bad idea…

From Beyond Fear by Bruce Schneier…

A French army officer asked him what he had learned from Napoleon. His reply was that he faced two problems during the war. One was the rifled musket behind earthworks, and the other was moving huge amounts of men and materiel [sic] by rail, and that Napoleon had nothing to say on either of them.

Bruce Schneier is, in my opinion, one of the most reasonable and grounded security minds today. Grounded by uncommon sense, he rarely fails to enlighten. The above passage Ulysses S. Grant’s reply to the French army officer during a visit to France following the US Civil War. It helps illustrate Schneier’s point that dynamic security systems, those which can adapt mid-attack, are more effective than static security systems, those that respond in a specific way every time. Security card readers are static. They deny you or allow you based on the presence of an access card. The armed guard is dynamic. He/she adapts to changing conditions. Seems obvious, doesn’t it? It was the difference between United Flight 93 and the rest of the plans that didn’t make it on 9/11.

Moving on… tag outs to you…

Matt. I think we could count the New York Times. Who knows? I’m new to this. Can a newspaper count? Sure. Why not.
Paul and Amy. The manual for Gears of War would definitely count, and Squanto says “hi!” to Roe.
Tim. Do you still play pool at all? You were really shaping up there…
Lydia. 9. I really like all my friends and wish them all the best, and 10. Why won’t someone tag me with one of those viral tag things? I’m here in my new office, sniffling, and no one tags. What gives?
M. Get the camera phone, already.

The rules:

  1. Pick up the nearest book.
  2. Open it to page 123.
  3. Find the fifth sentence.
  4. Post in your blog the following three sentences.
  5. Tag five or more people, and acknowledge the person who tagged you.

Preparation

Posted on by

Class, what did we learn from this morning’s attempt at getting up and riding to work?

The night before…

Verify that you have all the clothing items you require when you get to work. Shirts and pants aren’t enough. Socks and underwear are also important.

Make sure that the cycling clothing you use, be it lycra gear, or simple shorts, is clean and ready to wear.

Verify that your bike is in working order. Check the tire pressure, at least, and if it’s been a few days, check the lights, fenders and chain for proper operation.

Verify that all your gear is accounted for, and not strewn about the house, having, perhaps, left it there after a long and tiring ride a few days before. Going back and forth from the garage to the driveway to the house to the garage to the house to the driveway, etc., is frustrating. Avoid it.

Check the weather so you’re not discouraged by a few random drops that look like they might be much more, but aren’t.

In the morning…

Leave yourself time for unforeseeable emergencies.

If the dog doesn’t eat his breakfast, check the house out for puppy accidents, b/c he’s probably not feeling well. Preferably, don’t wait until the last minute, right as your leaving, to do this.

If you have carpet, make sure you have carpet cleaner.

Stop

Posted on by

With no inspiration to write this morning, I set about my normal task of catching up on my daily blogs. There are the cycling blogs, the mockery blogs, the security blogs, and the comics. I came across this in my perusals, and remembered a near encounter I had (almost had?) this morning.

It was a very slow ride in, on account of having slightly too much fun yesterday for Memorial Day… at least up until the very last minute, but we’ll get to that later. As I was approaching 91st and Lowell, I noticed another commuter heading north on Lowell. He blew right through the stop sign, with cars entering the intersection from all 5 directions. He didn’t slow for the sign, and he made no signals that I could see. He just rode through as if neither the intersection nor the cars were there.

I briefly considered chasing him down, as Joe started to do, but came to the same conclusion. Going out of my way like that just wasn’t in the cards this morning.

So as he sped off heading north, surely to run more stop signs, and disregard more stop lights, scofflaw that he is, I turned south and made my way, slowly but surely, to work.

Part of the reason for the slow ride is because I’m sad. When the GF moved in, she brought her cat with her. A rag doll that looks like a little white tiger, he really is a great cat. I’ve really grown attached to him. He’s actually a dog in a cat body, which is why I like him. The best of both species, he is very affectionate and loves people, and has the agility and vocal chords of a cat. He sheds like no other animal I’ve ever known, but he’s gorgeous.

But… he pees. He uses his litter box, certainly, but he also uses the couch. And he used to use the bed before the bedroom door was kept closed. And who knows what else. The GF spent a great deal of money on a Cat Genie, hoping to make her life easier, and that a change in litter box might snap him out of it. She was also hoping the move would snap him out of it. “Stranger things,” yes? Not so much. I’m no help, b/c I’ve never had a cat before.

Last night, right before we turned in, the GF found more urine on her couch in the basement. She’d covered it in plastic, so the couch was very protected, but that was the last straw, and as surprisingly sad as it makes me, we have to find him another home. But I’ll miss the little guy, in spite of myself. He doesn’t pee a *lot* outside of the litter box, but it’s too much for us, and we don’t know how to make him stop.

The Tank is Safe

Posted on by

Tank is the GF’s dog. Not long after she moved in with me, we started looking into local BSL, and as it turns out, Pit Bull’s are banned in our neck of the woods. I won’t go into how ridiculous I think such bans are, aside from saying I think banning a breed (or, as in the case of Pits, a group of dogs with similar characteristics) is ridiculous. The point of this is to mark the day we found out that Tank is not, in fact, a bully breed, but a Rott/Boxer mix.

They can’t take him away for being a Pit, we have the papers to prove he’s not! Happy day!

Slamhammafest, and Peaceful Moonlight

Posted on by

I made record time last night. It’s possible that the stiff tailwind helped, but I’m inclined to think it was my own stellar physique and motivation more than anything.

I didn’t set out for a personal best. I just set out and found that I was going pretty fast, and that it felt good. I went with it. Both the fast and the feeling good, that is. Before I knew it, I was almost home, and pulling a great average speed (16.4mph/3:39 pace) and was going to beat my previous best by minutes, not seconds.

Of course, when I realized this, somewhere around 91st and Quivira, my motivation changed from enjoying the fast pace, to beating my previous best, and my hammerfest turned into a slamhammafest. I tore down Quivira as fast as I could, letting up only for stop lights and cars going slower than I (yes… it happened). I did pay brief respect to the car full of young women who deemed it their duty to yell such things as “Yeah!” and “Oh Yeah!” and “Wooo!!” as I spun my legs at 110rpm in the highest gear. That may have cost me a second or two, but I believe in acknowledging compliments when they’re given. It’s a personal flaw I have to deal with.

When I got home, I was beat, but not nearly so much as my first few commutes when I started, or my first couple commutes after being sick for three weeks. I felt tired, but strong.

This morning, though I may not get any riding in this weekend on account of moving the GF in, I took it ridiculously easy. Once I got out of the house, that is. The cat was underfoot, and damned determined to bolt past me into the garage at every opportunity. I don’t care if he goes into the garage, but who knows how long he’d be there, or what he’d get into before the GF woke up. Best to keep him relatively contained, until we’re confident he’s found all the nooks and crannies he’s going to find. As confident as can be, anyway. ;)

On to the ride… Last night’s slamhammafest was fantastic, but you can’t over do that sort of thing. I have to keep a mind towards actual training here as the Triple Bypass looms nigh. So, as I said, I took it ridiculously easy. I didn’t care about speed, or cadence; I cared only about keeping my heart rate very low. I did that pretty well, averaging 144bpm.

My one regret was that the gorgeous nearly full moon, partially veiled in wispy clouds, was behind me for most of the trip. It reminded me of the moons I used to draw as a child. I’d sit on the floor with colored paper and crayons (graduating to pencil and colored pencil after a while), and seek the perfect moon with the perfect wispy cloud covering that evoked just the right sense of awe and dread. This morning, the moon was just that. Perfect. I wish it would have been around longer before the clouds swallowed it. It wasn’t a loss, though. I was able to carry the sight of it with me the rest of the way into work, and thought of many things from my distant past I hadn’t thought of in years.

A good morning.

New Member of the Household

Posted on by

nova.jpgThe GF finally brought her kitty, Nova, over last night. The impetus was having received the new automatic litter box in the mail yesterday… that and the fact that she was starting to feel really really bad leaving him at her place, when she was spending approximately (let me think) 100% of her time at mine (ours after this weekend). That’s him to the right.

He’s a good kitty. It will be interesting to see how my allergies handle this newest addition to the household. Anyone know where I can get a Dyson pet vac for The Cheap?

The Sound of Change

Posted on by

Last night the GF called me out into the backyard. She was out rounding up the four legged members of the family. She put the puppies inside while I waited on the porch and told me to be as quiet as possible and just listen.

“Do you hear that?” she said.
“Hear what? I near nothing.”
“Listen… the soft rustling…”

I finally heard it. It was background noise. Input on the very periphery of my senses, until I finally zeroed in on it.

Earthworms! I didn’t go out into the yard and trample them, but there were a couple we could see right up close. From the sounds, there must have been hundreds of them!

I’ve never heard earthworms before. They pose no threat to me, so why would I notice them? They offer no direct benefit either, so they have, for over 30 years, completely escaped my attention unless they’ve found there way to a sidewalk or path.

I wonder what else has been under my feet all these years that I’ve been blind to.