Welcome to the chat room, Cutetropolitans! Reader Squiddy has left us under the watchful eye of Nefertiti. “Here’s my sweet Nefertiti, lounging on my lap of an evening. With a little side-eye, wondering what I plan to do with this camera in her face.”
Nefertiti is gorgeous and what a great name!
I really have no news to share so I will just wish you all a happy weekend!
Happy Caturday!
Today I’m going to my uncle’s house where my cousin is letting the family come claim any sentimental items we might want before he holds an estate sale and sells the house (my uncle is in an assisted living place right now and can’t live alone anymore). I don’t know that there’s anything specific I would want (I have a few pieces of my aunt’s jewelry that my uncle gave us after she died), but I kinda want to just say hi and see the house one last time. It was Christmas for a good 20 years or so. 🙁
Then I’m going to get my hair cut and then go to my parents’ for my birthday dinner (my birthday is on Monday). I requested a roast chicken dinner and yellow cake with chocolate frosting. My dad’s sister is also visiting from Texas.
The other day I wandered by the county SPCA space at the mall (I was at Lenscrafters for an eye exam and ordered new glasses…I needed a furry fix after that bill). They didn’t have any adoptable fuzzies, unfortunately (or maybe fortunately?), but one of the workers had her dog which was an interesting mix. She had Golden Retriever fur on a Basset Hound body. And she was trying to wander out into the mall to get pets from passersby. Of course I obliged.
Happy early Birthday!!! And the dinner sounds yummy!
Thanks! I couldn’t think of any restaurants that I really wanted to eat at and my mom makes the best gravy, so…
Happy Birthday, Allein – have a delicious time with your folks.
I had friends who had a golden with very short legs – she looked perfectly normal when she was in tall grass and then she’d walk out of the tall grass without having to get up first. Her name was “Normal” which was given to her as a puppy before they knew the was challenged in the height department.
AND – I almost forgot – Nefertiti is a drop-dead pretty kitty.
This one had the long body and ears and short legs and pigeon-toes. And long blonde fur.
Happy Birthday on Monday, Allein! I hope that you get to see lots of family today!
Happiest of birthdays Allein.
Went to my uncle’s; only took a couple things (most stuff is too big and/or just not my taste). In the basement they had a little shelf of knickknacks, mostly animals, and I took these two little guys. And I do mean little – sitting on quarters for scale.
Also while poking around in little drawers and doors in a desk/hutch in the dining room, I found this little Wedgewood plate hidden in the center little cabinet. I wonder how long it’s been there and if anyone even knew it was there. It’s about 4 inches across and I just liked it.
So much other stuff I’ve seen over the years but never really registered what was there. (They had already cleared a lot out, too, mostly furniture from the bedrooms. I hope my cousin finds a place for the ping pong table; his father built it and we had a tournament every Christmas. I can tell he really doesn’t want to get rid of it, and I know his son would be very sad if he did.)
All three collectables are lovely and special– and I agree, I hope your cousin finds a place for the ping-pong table. If not, how about a local boys/girls club donation?
Precious items Allein. I have two small, cracked figurines from my grandparents house. I remember growing up with them being a constant presence on her coffee table.
My grandparents’ house had a half wall between the living room and kitchen, and the upper half was a grid of little shelves that was open on both sides, each with a little knickknack of some sort in it. When my grandfather died (I was 12) and my grandmother was preparing to move to my uncle’s, she let us each choose one or two things from the house. I took the two things I always loved when I was little – a little brass teddy bear sitting in a little brass rocking chair, and one of these (the little chick head is a tiny spoon):
(My new little pups are currently sitting on the shelf with them.)
Oooo. Lovely.
My mother died in April 2016. My sister and I sold the house in June of this year. A good deal of the reason it took so long was the time we took going through all the stuff. She lived in that house for 51 years. It is hard to get rid of objects that have emotional meaning. I live in a one=bedroom apartment that is now filled with objects I’m having trouble integrating but also have trouble getting rid of.
I know the feeling. There were a few things I would have liked if I had the space for them. But I’d rather have a couple little keepsakes than something big that I don’t know what to do with but can’t bring myself to get rid of. I’ve already got plenty of my own stuff I can’t part with.
That’s some serious side-eye!
Nefertiti, we see that little side-eye you are giving the camera. We don’t really have any news to share. The weather is beautiful and we are here at the office just having a regular day. Thanks for sharing the lovely photo. Have a wonderful rest of your weekend.
Beautiful cat! Love that side eye too. Got word the other day, I have my fosters for about another week. I’ve fattened up the kittens so they (plus mom) are now big enough to be spayed/neutered and put up for adoption. Sorta sniff-sniff but all of them are starting to wear out their welcome a little. I think momma cat has gone back into heat and she’s been yowling and wandering at night, the kittens are havoc on 8 legs, into e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. I had forgotten how much work those little kittens are so I’m quite ready to hand them back.
Busy weekend #2 for me after last weekend with the concerts. Sunday’s concert were fantastic too. Cheap Trick was good, Journey was AWESOME!!! And had to skip Def Leppard as they weren’t going on til 9:30 and hubby has to get up super early (like 3:30/4) for work. As I put it, my inner teenager was sulking in her room but I decided to be the grownup and go home when he left. Plus the music was getting a little much for my ears. Either they’ve turned up the volume or my ears are now super sensitive but I don’t remember concerts being that loud.
Tonight, we have our neighborhood progressive dinner . Cocktails at one house, entrees at another and dessert at house #3. We’ll be hosting 6 of our neighbors for a lovely pasta feast with salad and bread and the wine will be flowing. Should be a good time but oh the prep work involved to get the house clean, especially after hosting cats for about 3 weeks. Then tomorrow, we go up to our friends house and do all his errands plus cook meals so he’ll be set for another 2 weeks. Whew. I think Monday I’ll need to go back to work to get a break, lol.
Happy First Weekend of Fall! Oh yeah, almost forgot, we here in SoCal might get our first rain since who knows when sometime next week. I thought I’d never celebrate a rain storm but yippeee!!
I’m just putting the finishing touches to ‘Please Throw Two Carrots at Your Mother’, my long-delayed fourth volume of extracts from the theatrical newspaper ‘The Era’. The fifth and final volume is almost completed but I haven’t chosen a title yet. I was particularly intrigued to find this little snippet in the issue of 21st October 1866:
“MELANCHOLY END OF A MUSICAL ENGAGEMENT. – A deplorable accident occurred at Stonebridge, near Hampton-in-Arden, on Wednesday morning. On Tuesday morning the band of the 1st Warwickshire Militia, consisting of thirteen performers, proceeded to Maxstoke Castle, near Coleshill, having been engaged to take part in the festivities given in honour of the marriage of Fetherstone Dilke, Esq., who had returned that day from his wedding tour. At about half-past ten oʼclock on the following morning the return journey was commenced, and a number of the men were seated outside of the vehicle, amongst whom was the unfortunate deceased, William Blakeman. While descending a hill near Stonebridge the horses suddenly took fright, and deceased was thrown head foremost into the turnpike-road. Many of the other men were also thrown from the vehicle, and received severe contusions. Blakeman was immediately picked up and conveyed to a public-house. The body was found to be perfectly inanimate, the deceased having sustained a contusion of the brain. The unfortunate man, who was forty years of age, has left a wife and five children behind him.”
Mr Dilke’s marriage to Rosamond, daughter of Sir Alexander and Lady Maria Dixie, was not a happy one. In 1877 he killed himself by cutting his throat in an Ilfracombe hotel, and in 1881 Rosamond gave birth to Harold Heneage Dilke, who was probably fathered by her old flame Joseph Heneage Finch, 7th Earl of Aylesford. Harold married my great-great aunt Amelia Edwards in 1915.
Alice, what fun to dig into the past like this, especially when it’s connected to your family!
It certainly is! A few years ago I visited Maxstoke Castle on its annual Open Day and also stayed at Rosamond’s childhood home Bosworth Hall, which is now a hotel.
“Perfectly inanimate”. Snerk. Sounds like a book title to me.
Quiet week, quiet weekend. Hope everyone is doing well.
Fetherstone Dilke sounds like a name in a P.G. Wodehouse novel, maybe a friend of Bertie Wooster’s.
Ha! That’s exactly what I thought when I first came across it. Another gentleman connected with the Dixie family rejoiced in the name of Maximilian Hugh Stanley Champneys. I can just imagine Fetherstone and Maximilian throwing bread rolls about at the Drones Club…
I just reread “The Code of the Woosters” after probably 40 years. Still hilarious. A friend recommended “Joy in the Morning.” Have you read that?
I think I’ve read all the Jeeves/Wooster and Blandings books over the years. When I read them for the first time I didn’t realise that P.G. was still writing them in the late 1960s but the characters never really aged – one minute you were immersed in what appeared to be the mid-1930s, then somebody mentioned TV or supermarkets! And poor old Bertie never inherited the family title and became Lord Yaxley.
Wow what a history lesson and those are some crazy names. I thought my dad’s side was bad with all the greek names like Bobbis, Memos, Marika, etc. but those are almost tongue twisters.
Starbucks is getting stingy with their birthday rewards…they used to send you a postcard and it was good for a couple weeks, now they just load it onto your account and you just have to tell them you want to use it, and you had a week or so, then last year I think it was good for a couple days before/after the day, now I just opened the email about it and this year it’s only valid on the day itself. I was going to use it today on my way to my uncle’s but now I guess I’ll have to make sure I leave early enough on Monday morning.
Happy Caturday, everybody! Nefertiti is simply gorgeous, just like her namesake. Fun fact: the original Nefertiti was married to Pharaoh Akhenaten, Egypt’s first and only ruler to worship a single god, instead of the whole pantheon (monolatrist). He basically tried to uproot thousands of years of tradition in worship of the god Aten. When he died, Egypt reverted to polytheism and the names of A and N were erased from public monuments and buildings. If the famous bst of Nefertiti is true to life, she was positively stunning, like this lovely kitkat.
Okay, history lesson is over. I’ve got a busy weekend: still working on bathroom demo before I can start to rebuild it, picking up my gardens in boxes for my lawn guy to plant, lots of cooking and baking. Fall weather has begun, though today it will get up to 88 degrees. I’m relieved that my new heating/cooling system is installed and working, and I get to test both the heat *and* the AC this weekend!
Happy birthday in advance, Allein! AJ, kittens only survive because they’re so stinking cute–I always forget what pests they are once they grow up. Enjoy the weekend, everyone.
Coincidentally, I’m listening to Philip Glass’ opera ‘Akhnaten’ at the moment!
Shut the front door! What a coincidence!
Philip Glass is my all time favorite composer of any music. I saw Twyla Tharp dance to his Upstairs Room a million years ago and never turned back!
I can’t wait to see English National Opera’s new production of “Akhnaten” next March – it looks spectacular.
Ooooo. It will be.
Some piccies from last year’s premiere:
https://www.eno.org/whats-on/akhnaten/
https://www.eno.org/whats-on/akhnaten/
It’s a huge contrast to ENO’s first production of the opera, which I saw in the 1980s – very minimalist to match the music. If that was the penny plain version the new production is the tuppence coloured!
Thanks, Deb! I’m hoping for fall weather on Monday. I don’t like it when my birthday still feels like summer. I want to be able to wear a sweater, not a t-shirt. Alas, they’re predicting mid-70s. :-/
Happy Caturday to all and happy birthday to Allein! That birthday dinner sounds delish!
AJ, good luck with the kittens and mama, and I do hope you get some rain. As former SoCal myself, I know how rare that is.
Alice Shortcake, that was an amazing excerpt from your book! I wish you much success with it.
I also am putting the finishing touches on a project: The Cutetropolis 2019 Calendar is completed and I’m going to spend the afternoon reviewing it for errors. I’m very happy with the design this year — each page has a full-color photo. I’m finished in time to enter the calendar in a contest held by Lulu.com, the publisher. Winners get listed in Lulu’s holiday gift guide, which would be a way to introduce Cutetropolis to new audiences.
I just finished combing my rabbit Ani’s fur. She seems to be in a shedding cycle now and so I will have to comb her at least once a week. There seems to be no end to the loose fur that comes off! She doesn’t like being combed but submits quietly. I left her some apple pieces as a reward, but she hasn’t eaten them yet. When she won’t gobble down apple, that’s how I know she’s angry.
Thanks, Mike.
Ani sounds like Stars with the fur, except hers is year-round. Sometimes I wonder how she’s not bald.
I’m so excited for the 2019 calendar–if it’s as good as 2018’s, I’ll be a happy camper. Turned to the October page earlier this week and howled like a hyena over the hilarity. Then rushed to my office mate to show him, and he did the same thing.
Mike, you were also the inspiration for this year’s big push on Talk Like a Pirate Day: I got most of the office staff to participate!
PS: I meant to say that each page has a full-PAGE photo, not full-color which has always been the case.
Quiet weekend for me helping to shuttle my mom back and forth to the care facility that Dad is in. His health continues to improve, thank goodness.
I’m trying not to worry too much about my son settling at University– easier said than done. He has to make his own way, and I have to do my best to stand back and let him.
My birthday was on Thursday, and I thought it was going to be sadly quiet, but my coworkers decorated my cubicle with streamers and balloons! So I got a lot of unexpected happy birthday wishes from people coming into the office.
I hope that everyone has a peaceful Fall weekend…unless you are in the southern hemisphere- then I hope you have a peaceful Spring weekend! Smiles, Maia
Happy Birthday! Sounds like you’re popular with your coworkers!
Happy Birthday.
Happy belated, Maia! Your son will be fine, because you’ve trained him up right and now you trust him to be a grownup.
Happy birthday!!
Happy Birthday, Maia! Glad you had a bit of a celebration.
Happy birthday!
Happy Birthday! – Great co-workers you have – I love surprises like that.
Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes! It has been a tough year getting used to my new normal (I can’t remember who dubbed them “seismic changes”, but you are so right-). Having the community here has been such a blessing.
Thank you again, and thanks to Mike for hosting this site… which makes the community possible. 🙂
Belated Happy Birthday Maia!
Gorgeous day here. Sat outside with Millie. Now having the pleasure of organizing my art supplies and personal items as I just received a new filing cabinet. It fits right next to my drafting table. Too bad I’m not young enough to replace my bed with a loft bed… I could cram in flat files! But finally I have all my art essentials.
Good birthday wishes and happy weekend to all humans and their animals.
I’ve always wanted flat files! Never had the space for them either. I’m enjoying getting to paint right now – I’m painting designs on 2″ papier mâché boxes to sell at a craft show end of Nov. I’ll be doing some frames as well, just getting back into he swim by painting little stuff. And I started up teaching my water color class last Wednesday – I have 5 return students and 3 new ones who seem very keen.
Murray I finished and signed my first oil. Start my second on Tuesday. Much happy anticipation.
Your students are lucky to have you!
Card I got from my aunt and uncle:
Inside says “Oh, yeah…like if you had magic shoes, you’d go to Kansas.”