New kitty??

See my former post about my decision, but a friend of mine wants me to take this kitty. What do you think of her?

She's a Russian Blue with green eyes. She's pretty much a rescue since the woman who has her keeps rescuing many of the cats from our shelter that they have to put down. When you look up the characteristics of a Russian Blue online, that might be what Bailey and I need. They are something that is affectionate yet playful and easy to train to stay off the counters and stuff. Is that possible?

Should I reproduce? .. Animal lovers chime in!

Okay, now that I look at it, that title is a bit creepy. No, I am NOT reproducing with animals because that would just be gross. However, the only way my household will grow at this point is by having more pets (unless Mister Right falls out of the sky.. Ha!.. Holding my breath for that one!). I am one of those whose pets are a part of the family though.

Since I have been volunteering on the board for our pitiful animal shelter, everyone keeps trying to get me to take more animals home with me. I currently have a bird (not from the shelter) and my Bailey (who came from the shelter 2 years ago). While I would love to have another dog, I really don't think my landlord would appreciate that, and I don't think that would be fair when I don't have a fenced yard for them to play in. However, I have been considering getting a cat.

"Rescue me, Krissy. Please!"

Now I used to be a dog and cat person. Over the years, I have pretty much just been a dog person. The thought of having a cat climbing on my kitchen counters does not appeal to me. I thought a cat might be a good addition to the house to help entertain Bailey, though she goes ape-shit over cats she sees outside. I didn't consider it any further because of the bird.

On Black Friday when we were having breakfast, Mom was reminding Dad that she misses her bird and wants one for Christmas. I looked at her and suggested she take my Petey. She said she couldn't believe I'd give him up. Now they have kept Petey for me on occasion, and he LOVES my parents, especially Dad. This Cockatiel will give me a headache when he comes home from staying with them because Dad whistles and talks to him all the time! And believe me, he loves my mother just as much because his cage and water bowl have never been so clean as when he stays with them.

So it's been decided she will get Petey for Christmas... or whenever I make the drive again. Merry Christmas to Mom and Petey!

Mom suggested that if I get a cat it should be a kitten even though I wanted to rescue this one cat that has been at the shelter for quite a while. She said she thought it would be an easier transition for Bailey to accept. Do you all agree?

Also, she mentioned that now they have self-cleaning litter boxes. Is this true? I didn't consider the litter box much because the last cat I had rarely used it and went outside to go potty in the mulch. Since this cat would probably not be outside at all (if I can help it), I want something that would be easy, as odor free as possible, and something that Bailey HOPEFULLY won't get into. Although I found some ideas online today about how to keep Bailey out of a little box, no matter what shape or size if I have to resort to it.

What type of cat do you prefer? I have always found that calicoes are the sweetest, but what do you think? Should I get one that similar in color to Bailey so I only have the same type of hair color to worry about? It's been so long since I had a cat, that I need you all to refresh my memory. We have so many up there that need rescued.

I love this Calico, but should I get one of these with her because they are more the color of Bailey?

Please give me your opinions on the whole dog/cat thing, litter boxes, etc. I will try to make the funny posts resume tomorrow. :)

Thanksgiving weekend

Bailey and I made the trip home to my parents' house Wednesday evening. She goes ape when she hears me ask if she wants to go to Grandma and Poppop's. She loves running in their big backyard.

"Are we there yet? Are we there yet?"

As you can see, Bailey has to wear a seatbelt harness because otherwise she is all over the place in my Jeep. She doesn't like it, but it has made my life tons easier. After all, I would like to keep the transmission in my vehicle, and I'm not too keen on her throwing the car into another gear.

We had our Thanksgiving meal at my nephew and his wife's house. It was a combination of her family and part of our family. The food was great, and we had seconds at my parents' house to load up for the all night shopping spree my mother informed us we were about to embark on. Wal-mart decided it would be better to have the toy sales start at midnight, and the electronics start at 4 a.m. This is what it looked like at both hours, by the way.

My expression was not nearly as enthused as any of these patrons.

We had four ladies get in an argument about their place in line that we thought was going to break out into a knock-down-drag-out fight something like this. 

If you had seen the madness near the towels that were on sale, you would have thought they were fighting over HD TV's that were on sale for $1. I wanted some of the sheets, but didn't dare go near there with all the boxes and plastic and hair flying! It was the craziest thing I've ever seen in my life. They are towels, people! Not gold bars. 

As tired as I was after the experience at midnight, we did go back at 4 a.m. to get some other things, and we hit a few other stores. I will say it was kind of nice to be done shopping for the day by 9 a.m. I went home and did a little shopping online before crashing. Dad was a little testy because he said my phone kept ringing while I was asleep, and the volume on my ringtone was turned up so it kept scaring the crap out of him. So sorry Mr. Lightweight-who-couldn't-handle-the-second-round-of-shopping! I was TIRED! Honestly, I never sleep through my phone, so that should tell you something.

Saturday morning I had to go get my neighbor's Ridgeback at the kennel where he was being boarded. To show you his size in relation to my Bailey...

He's a horse, but he's a big baby. (Bailey wasn't even as big as his head when I brought her home from the shelter.) He and Bailey were just as tired as I was though, so this is how the both of them remained for about 12 hours straight after we got home.

Cody decided he really likes Bailey's new bed. So of course she didn't get to sleep here.

She had to resort to the couch. Doesn't she look put out?

Apparently, my camera phone was just as tired as we were because the color on those photos is awful. But we had a really great time with the family. We played pool, drank, ate, ate some more, and laughed so hard at times that our faces hurt. Oh, and I just have to share this photo. My grand-nephew Jaxon was asleep on his daddy, and right before I clicked the picture he smiled for his Aunt Krissy. I just love that boy!

"If they only knew what I'm dreaming of doing for all these cameras in years to come."

I want to ask everyone's advice on my new possible family member too, so I'll write more later. For once, it's not a baby! I think my family will actually make it through this Christmas without a baby on the way. They are a fertile bunch, our crew. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I am still catching up on reading everyone else's blogs.

My brave, brave dog

I just realized that I don't think I've written about my dog yet, which is very strange since she means so much to me. Her name is Bailey, and she's a mutt rescued from the shelter. Well, actually she rescued me. When I saw her little speckled face, I just had to have her. Can you blame me?


"I am not nearly as innocent as I look, but don't you love me anyway?"

 Now she is about two years old since we estimate she was born around Thanksgiving, and she is the love of my life. Although she can do things that drive me crazy (what loved one doesn't?), she brings so much joy to my life.

She is the best watch dog ever! She hears and smells and sees things I've never even seen another dog notice. She notices planes up in the sky, for God's sake. One thing I love about her is that she can spot a bug in my house in a second! I hate bugs, so having her point them out to me so I can rid the world of them is just fine with me.

For the past two days, she has been upset that there was a bug on my ceiling. The first time she noticed it, I did actually get on a step stool to check it out because it almost looked like a tick or a beetle from afar. This bug just about drove her to the brink of sanity, especially last night. She ended up hiding under the kitchen table for a while last night from the thing! Yes, my big brave dog was reduced to a cowering baby over THIS!

"I know I didn't put on my makeup today, but what the hell is wrong with that dog?"

A ladybug is such a scary creature, as you all know. As you can imagine, she was driving me crazy about the ladybug. She barked at the thing forever before she finally decided I wasn't going to kill it so she should go hide from it.

I know you're probably thinking, "Why the hell didn't Krissy just kill it?" Well, I'm a superstitious person, and I've always heard that it's good luck to find a ladybug in your house. With the way things have been going in my life, I wasn't about to tempt fate by killing a ladybug!

Eventually, the ladybug was nice enough to fall down and land right on my remote control. So to pacify the watch dog that I could effectively remove the eminent threat myself, I walked over to the door and set the ladybug free.

I know that story kept you on the edge of your seat with anticipation, but I thought I needed to share it. For those who will be MIA for the rest of the week because of the holiday, have a Happy Thanksgiving! I'll be checking in and probably blowing you all away with another heart stopping story like this one.

"I don't care what she says, that story never happened. Do I look like the type to cower from a ladybug? Ha!"

NFL commissioner is a douche!

For my followers who are not NFL fans, please feel free to skip this one. If you are a fan of a team I may slam during this post, I am not intentionally lashing out at you. Well, I'm sure I mean what I say in regards to your team, but you get the picture. Anyway, I simply must vent about this idiot who calls himself the NFL commissioner.

"I am an idiot. Maybe I should suspend myself since I can't seem to be consistent with anyone else."



Am I the only one who has noticed that he seems to really hate the Pittsburgh Steelers? Where the hell did this "jagoff" (as they would say in the 'Burgh) come from that he seems to just have it out for my boys? I've read his bio, and I don't really see anything that stands out. So what the hell is his problem? Oh, that's right! Look who was appointed his "special advisor" last year.

"Hey, Coach Madden! Glad you came with the Commish. I mean, you have no bias at all against my team, and you're over that whole Immaculate Reception thing right?"

Let's recap some things he's done. First he suspends Ben Roethlisberger who was never arrested for anything! Let me repeat, he was NEVER CHARGED WITH ANYTHING! Now I know he was guilty of bad judgement, but I honestly think the second accusation only came about because of the first one. And the first accusation didn't come until a year and another Super Bowl win later! Hmmmm, gold digger much? There was never enough evidence in either case to charge him with anything criminal. As much as Ben loved his mom and still loves his step-mom and sister, I just don't see him as the type to prey on women. If he really had a problem with that, don't you think he would have attacked someone in Pittsburgh by now? Funny how the accusations only happen when he is out of the state.

So Goodell thinks Ben needs to be made an example of. Let's suspend the 2-time winning Super Bowl QB for SIX games. What the...?? Yes, initially it was six games, but it got reduced to four because Ben agreed to jump through hoops for Goodell and get counseling.

"We screwed those damn Steelers good this time, didn't we, John? What can we do next?"

Tell me you are going to possibly change the course of an NFL team's season just on the word of some girls the commissioner didn't even speak to and when no charges were brought. In that case, let me run to New England and accuse Tom Brady of raping me. Do you think we would be in this boat if it had been him? Nope! Because the Patriots can be on 'roids, cheat, and violate any number of NFL policies and they never get SHIT done to them.

As most people know, Goodell has been all over James Harrison this season about hits and fining him left and right. It got so bad that at one point Harrison contemplated retirement, and Troy Polamalu even spoke up to say Goodell was abusing his power. It takes a lot for Troy to speak out about anything. The NFL uses highlight reels that show big hits, but Harrison is supposed to take it easy or risk suspensions next time. Do whatnow?

Flash forward to this week when Richard Seymour (former Patriot and current Raider) punches Ben and knocks him on his ass after the whistle has blown and we have scored a touchdown. Personally, I wish one of our linemen who had been standing there had laid him out. But okay... The ref takes care of it and Seymour is thrown out of the game. Surely Goodell can't ignore this one right? Wrong! Let's give him a $25,000 fine and no suspension. Great! Sounds like a plan. What the...?? Are you kidding me with this?

Seriously, whatever you feel about Ben, don't you think there would have been a suspension if it had been Brady or Peyton? Or what if Harrison had done the same thing? This is getting more than ridiculous. I even saw a Raider fan say that Harrison's roughing the passer penalty that negated a defensive touchdown was stupid because it wasn't a malicious hit, and that Seymour deserved more than he got. When will we be able to stop the madness here, folks? I think he would get off of my team's ass if he only had to face this.

I'm thankful for a short work week!

So is everyone ready for Thanksgiving? I think I'm ready to spend some relaxing time with my family on that day at least. It seems like when I've been home recently (which is about 45 minutes away) we've had so much going on that we are always busy. Granted, we'll be watching football, but our Steelers aren't playing that day, so I won't really care who wins too much.

Of course, that night will probably be game night for all of the clan, too. My family is addicted to Skip-Bo lately. Funny how a $5 card game I bought at Wal-Mart before our last trip to Pittsburgh would end up being a game every household needed. We have fun playing lots of games though. Are we the only ones who still do that? My friends always fuss at me because I do more with my family than anyone else when I'm off, but my family is a trip! At least I know there is never a dull moment with them.

I know I will happily take a 3-day work week for Thanksgiving, even though my mother will have me up at the crack of "OMG what time is it?" to go shopping on Friday. I'm sure I'll have some crazy photos and/or stories to tell after that experience. I truly hate shopping, so I try to get as much bought on that day as I can every year. You get great deals, and I know Mom is going to have me there with her anyway. I usually make a list after that to see who else I need to buy for, and those gifts either get bought on the internet or during one more mass shopping day.

I swear they start putting things out for Christmas earlier every year though. This year I saw that stuff out before I saw Halloween stuff! What the ...? That is just crazy. Now if someone would just come clean my house for me so I can decorate this weekend, I'd love you whole bunches!

Never-ending chore... Laundry!

Is that any chore to be done around the house that is truly never-ending besides laundry? I mean think about it. While you are doing laundry, you are basically wearing the next load. If you do the dishes, you can be finished with those and not have any more to do until you decide to dirty more. But guess what? You are probably using a wash rag and/or towel, right? Then you get all of the house work done, and you go to shower to clean up. Well, there go some towels to clean and more clothes you are going to put on. It is never-ending, I tell ya!

I would think even nudists can't say they don't have laundry to do all of the time. They just don't have as much of it. Because I would think they still use towels and sheets and things like that. Believe me, no one wants to see me going around naked. I wouldn't even do that to my bird and my dog.

I will say I am all about grabbing clothes as soon as the dryer shuts off though. They either get folded or hung up, because this chica does NOT iron. As much as my mother hates it, I don't do it unless it's absolutely necessary or for a special occasion. My mother would iron everything when I was growing up, including dad's undershirts and handkerchiefs and our jeans. I think I was the only kid in school with creases in her jeans. So as I was saying, clothes in this house get folded quickly. They might not always make it to getting put away very quickly though, but that's another story.

Not me... On any given day!

So what chores do you all hate? Although I must say, I hate doing dishes more than laundry.... although maybe not more than ironing. I am willing to cook all the time if someone else would just come do the damn dishes. That is about the only good thing my former roommate was useful for. She hated to cook, but she was fine with doing dishes.

Holy crap.. and TGIF!

I have a good "holy crap" and a bad "holy crap." First the good one. Jumble Mash was kind enough to follow me today. Yay! That's my first follower who isn't a friend or family member, so I am psyched! Please check her out. I'm sure she'll be overwhelmed by the masses that will come from my blog at this point.

Maybe this means others will follow me now. Geez, I hope so. I feel like I'm talking to myself here, people. And yes, I do that all of the time anyway. But now Jumble Mash is my new BFF. No, wait! Don't leave. I'm just saying... I'm tickled you are here is all.

Now for the bad one. I went to George's Truck Stop near the plant to get lunch today. I've gotten lunch there before, and the food is pretty good if you like southern fried cholesterol in a styrofoam box. Sometimes we need those carbs and fat grams though, am I right? Well, today I wanted to order something different so I asked for their chicken sandwich. I get back to the office, bite into it, and am stopped suddenly.

Do you see that ginormous bone? Yes, what you are seeing is a regular chicken wing and leg slapped onto a piece of bread. I'm sorry I ordered a what now? A chicken sandwich! I don't know about you, but my sandwiches don't generally have bones in them. I realize I am not used to every southern custom even though I've lived here most of my life, but how the hell do you each a sandwich like that? I know this isn't Chick-Fil-A, but work with me people.

On another note, I am glad it's Friday! I am tired and need to sleep at least until the sun comes up, for God's sake. I was just about to get my hopes up thinking I didn't have anything to do this weekend when it hit me I have to go to my great-niece's birthday party tomorrow. They live about 45 minutes from me. Well, Saturday is shot, but I'll be glad to see the kids and the rest of the family anyway.

God's wrath for helping puppies?

Last Thursday I went to the animal shelter to meet someone who wanted to foster a dog. I was doing a good thing, right? I thought so anyway. Well, while I was there I thought one of our pregnant dogs could use some more food. So I went over to where the food was and scooped some into her bowl. As I went to stand up, I thought it would be fun to BONK! my head on a fan they use to blow air on the kennels in the summer. I don't think the puppies I threw food on found it any funnier than I did.

So I move on to go help some of the other creatures there before we go. Ya know, make sure everyone has blankets and beds to keep them out of the cold as much as possible. Then I decided to step off the little drain ledge that's around back by the big dogs and twist my ankle. Did I really deserve that? Wait... You aren't thinking I'm clumsy or anything are you? 'Cuz that would just be rude! I was in pain... And am still in pain. I think a week of this ankle thing is enough, don't you? After all, I was trying to be helpful! Of course, I had to walk on this wonderful ankle for the fund raiser we had over the weekend, too. My house will never get clean at this rate. And yes, the ankle is the only reason I'm not cleaning at this very moment! Because I love to clean on Thursday nights after working all day. It's how I roll. Really... (No smartass comments from my family and friends about the cleaning thing now.)

Draggin' Mornin'

Do you ever have one of those mornings when you are so tired that you feel like things are going in slow motion? Like no matter how hard you press on the gas pedal, you can't get the car to go the flippin' speed limit?! That's how I feel today. The kicker is that I went to bed early! WTF? I don't mean I went to bed a few minutes early. I went to bed about an hour and a half early! That is so unlike me, but I was tired.

This time of year I have to go into work an hour early for about a month to do hearing tests on the guys I work with before they go out into the plant and get exposed to all of that noise. Now this wonderfully cheerful Taurus is not a morning person, people. Making me get up an hour early is no small feat. Picture how cranky Garfield can be when roused from a sound sleep, and that is how I feel when my THREE alarms go off. Yes, I set three alarms to get my ass moving. Two are on my clock (one beeping and the radio alarm) and one on my phone. Honestly, it's usually the phone that wakes me, but I won't take that chance.

So this is week two of this early morning crap, and I have 3 more to go. Joy! And there's a week that gets skipped so this happy feeling probably won't go away until the middle of December when I can get back on a decent schedule. The one plus to the situation is that I get off work an hour earlier, but I would give that back in a heartbeat to turn those alarms off and get an extra hour of sleep in the morning. I would rather stay up until 5 a.m. than get up at 5 a.m. The sun isn't even up at 6 a.m. yet! Why should I be?

Thoughts? Are you one of those annoying morning people who smile at me when I get to work an hour early?

Busy-ness

I have been so busy lately that I forgot all about this blog. I have been working and going to school like before, but I am also on the board for our pitiful animal shelter now. Apparently, I am the VP until we have an official vote in February. That could change though since I thought I was the Secretary last week.

We have gotten some good people involved since I signed up, including the Mayor of our little town. I am excited about the prospects even though some who were involved before are afraid we will get frustrated and leave. I have told them I am not going anywhere. I am determined to help some animals find forever homes and hopefully get a better facility built.

Of course, I have always loved animals. Since I had that age crisis earlier this year and wondered what my mark on this world is, working with the shelter has made me feel much better. I want to rescue them all, but I am happy to do what I can. I set up the Facebook page for the shelter, and I try to keep it up to date. I also got us signed up for Petfinder so that is going to help out a lot with other doors that can open. We also got a great opportunity with Rachel Ray's charity, but I will fill you in on that another time. We did a skeet shooting event this past weekend to benefit the animals. We made some pretty good money, and I met some new people who were a lot of fun. I think we did good for our first event.

 I am still in school too, and I just finished the hardest class I have had so far, Toxicology. OMG, that class was head-exploding hard so I definitely earned my A in that course. I have decided to take 3 classes each term so I can hopefully finish in April. I will be so glad to get my degree! Next term starts December 1st so we will see how taking 3 classes is going to work out.

Honestly, as busy as I have been I am enjoying it for the most part. I feel like I have a purpose and I am on a mission or two! Or five.... Anyway! I think I need to keep up the blog a bit better. I will try to do it on my phone if nothing else.(Although after posting this one, I see I need to come on the computer to edit it after posting through my phone. It showed just one continuous paragraph on here, when I put returns in on the phone. *sigh*)