Mystery Bald Spot

Something really weird happened the other day.

We went to work and everything was normal. When we got home this is what we saw on The Bad Room Mate.

Ziggy was acting completely "normal" - not afraid, not sick or tired or anything - just his usual mental self.

He has a giant bald spot right in between his shoulder blades! The skin wasn't irritated - no scratch marks, no swelling or infection. Just bald skin. There was some fur in the middle of the hallway and a bit more on the bed.

What the HELL?!

We have only one theory - he got scared and he ran underneath something (the bed? the bathroom cabinet?) and caught his back on the way. I know - it's not the greatest explanation but it's all we've got.

I think the reality is something much more mental. Like he was sitting on a table - too close to the edge - cleaning his bum and he lost his balance and fell of - catching himself on something on the way down. Much more his style.

Drilling III

Can you believe that we are still living in the middle of a construction site? Remember The Drilling?

One night last week we came home and found the window blinds re-installed*. It was like that scene in The Money Pit where Tom Hanks realizes the stairs are back in and and he gleefully runs up and down them a few times just for the pure joy of it.

I ran to the window and ran my hands along the blinds, twisted them open and closed a couple times - seriously, no blinds since May. May.

One night a couple weeks ago I came home from work to this:

The place was deserted other than Brad and Ziggy in the middle of the living room floor - staring at an opening in the wall. We found the contractors - they weren't sure how long it would be until they got the window in - so we put Ziggy in the bedroom and went for a coffee. Got home - still the gaping hole.

They finally installed the window later that night. The next morning the place was full of flies. 

I work with contractors and I love it. I've been super patient and don't really mind the work but I'm over it. We have piles of crap everywhere, no railing on the balcony, we can't open the sliding doors and there are bedsheets on the bookcases. Bedsheets on the bookcases!

They're scheduled to work until the end of November.

*....on three out of five windows, we are still partially blind-less.

Drilling II

Remember my post about "the drilling"? It's still going on!

And there are stories.

A couple months ago I had some dental work done and went under IV sedation. Afterwards, Brad drove me home where I was was super sleepy for the rest of the morning. I curled up on the couch and fell asleep - head back, mouth hanging open, heavy breathing - the epitome of beauty and poise.

I woke up to this scene:

Brad is poking me and whispering, "Jen, you might want to wake up, the construction workers are here."

As he helped me to the bedroom he was laughing and telling me they were giving me sideways glances as they slammed the window out of the opening and I slept through it all.

Thanks honey.

This morning I was on the phone with Telus, trying to do something online (and getting nowhere) and getting ready for work - all at the same time. A knock at the door...

Suddenly there are 8 construction workers in here throwing drop cloths everywhere, knocking on walls, unloading tools, ripping the temporary tape off the windows and making tons of noise. They were here to rip out the big windows.

I had no idea they were coming.

Ziggy was super stoked - and totally in the way. So I herded him into the spare bedroom, got his food and litter in there, organized everything online and hung up with Telus. When I finally came out of the bedroom one entire window was gone and the place was deserted.

I was only an hour late for work. The rest of my day was equally as chaotic and mental.

Bad Room Mate VI

We left The Bad Room Mate at Brad's dad's house when we went to Penticton. No biggie, he's been there before. My sister-in-law's cats were there at the same time. Again, no problem - he's met them before.

The night we got back we stayed over before heading back to the island. Zig was stoked to have us back, he stuck pretty close to us that night which isn't unusual actually.

It was hot, my feet were sticking out of the blankets. I was sound asleep.

4:00am - I woke up to a loud, horrible screeching nutcase at the same time as the bottom of my foot was ripped off.

(This photo was taken about two weeks after my foot was mauled. It was worse than it looks.)

Of course these two things happened at the same time as I sat up yelling "Mother F*%ker!!!"

Brad slept through it all.

At first we assumed that one of the other cats did it, but neither of them was around. I think Ziggy was so paranoid of them, that as he laid there fast asleep something touched him - maybe another cat, maybe the blanket, maybe my foot -  and he assumed it was another cat and freaked out.

I ask you for the millionth time - Why do we keep these creatures around?

Ropes

Tonight we had to move everything away from windows they are replacing. Brad no longer has a nightstand, I have about 8" between the bed and the wall and random furniture is now piled up in the living room. 

Someone else is going to have a much tougher time with all this than us....

(Brad always thought he was snuggling with him in this position. One day I snapped a photo to prove this is not the case.)

Our Bad Room Mate always comes to greet us when we come home - just like a dog. Today? He crawled out of the bathroom, super low to the ground - totally freaked out.

We quickly realized the contractor used the swing stage for the first time today so there are ropes hanging down past the balcony.

There are random things that scare Ziggy - the crack between the cushions on the couch, ripping plastic wrap off the roll and plastic bags to name a few.

But ropes? Ropes outside the windows are off the charts scary. So he put in a rough day underneath the bathroom cabinet.

Tomorrow they are actually coming in here to take blinds off most of our windows. Funny thing is, he will have a great time - enjoying their company, getting in the way the entire time and super curious to see what's going on. 

Unfortunately he will have to get used to the ropes because this is it - it's probably going to be a daily thing for a long time.

Creepy Images

  I found this image on the web a few weeks ago:

Seriously, it scares the hell out of me - and I love it!!

The first thing I did was email it to my mom. Which prompted a phone call asking why I was trying to give her a heart attack.

One afternoon I was at home alone and heard a noise that sounded a lot like Ziggy inside the dryer (which you have seen) scratching on the metal drum. He likes to do this whenever he gets the chance.

I got up to check it out but......the closet door was closed. I stopped in my tracks.....there is no way he could be in the dryer. 

So what was making the noise???

Heebies. In the middle of the day.

I just stood there and stared, mind racing. Then I saw it:

Ziggy was up on the bathroom counter - scratching on the mirror. It was my version of the creepy image!

He's done this before - remember the ball?

Angry Birds

I'm not a video game person.

At all.

The last time I was into a video games was Super Mario Brothers when Nintendo first came out. Before that we had Intellivision.....

...yeah, that was a long time ago. I loved games like Burger Time - a little chef that made giant hamburgers and was chased by fried eggs and sausages. The more mental, the better.

One day a few weeks ago my chum D. put her new iPad in my lap and started up Angry Birds. I couldn't believe what I saw.

Seriously? Sling-shotting birds into structures to smash into pigs? This is RIGHT up my alley.

I downloaded the $5 version and we've been playing it ever since.

There is only one problem with it - Ziggy can't sleep when we play it. All the smashing glass, pigs snorting, chirping birds - it keeps him up. He stares at us the entire time we're playing. Kinda like this:

Yeah, pretty distracting.

Making Friends

Cats don't like other cats. It's a fact of life. They hiss, howl, growl, moan and swipe at each other. No matter what.

Unless you are Ziggy.

When he sees a strange cat, he makes the cutest, most friendly sounds (think high pitched: "Hi! My name is Ziggy! Let's be friiieends!") and gets right in their faces. I've seen him chase cats under stairs trying to be friends....it's ridiculous and totally abnormal cat behaviour.

And it makes other cats want to kick the shit out of him.

Now I have proof. Brad shot this video over Christmas in the basement at my in-laws house. Watch it - DO. IT. It's only 60 seconds. (Make sure your sound is on so you can hear the friendly noises he makes.)



He has no idea the black cat is totally STALKING him in the beginning. Then he goes right in for more 5 seconds later!

Out of Control

So, after hearing lots of rumours that Jacob might be going out of business I decided to go back. I took Brad with me. Remember the last time he came on a big shopping trip with me? Well, I forgot to mention how he is when we shop together, here is a sample:

"Get it."

"Do it."

"Buy it."

Not just to get out of there either! He's a fairly typical guy when it comes to shopping: he shops once a year (maybe) for tops and once a year (maybe) for pants. Usually even years for tops, odd years for pants. He buys tons in one stop, at one store (The Bay) and then he won't go back forever.

So he's a bad influence on me, especially in Jacob during a big sale. This photo will probably cause deja vu for you guys.

Oh yeah! I forgot to mention that I was thinking about why I totally fell in love with those stripey sweaters from my last post.....and realized why. This sweater is officially know as my 'Ziggy Sweater'. Notice any resemblance?

Okay, I promise to have better posts soon.

Merry Christmas!

My parents sent us a parcel full of Christmas gifts - so exciting! They always send Ziggy something too, it's even wrapped and addressed to him. (They call him Bob.....long story.) It rattles like cat treats...

Then Brad went and hung a little stocking next to the tree for him. Oh and those plastic candy cane ornaments.....

We are off to the ferry after I finish this blog post, I have a cold and an eye infection - in both eyes. Joy. So I look like I'm hung over with my red bloodshot eyes. At least we're driving on so I don't have to go up on deck. We're taking Ziggy....he sleeps on the ferry!

Have a great holiday!

Three things worth waiting for

This has been my view for the last two weeks solid. Ziggy likes to stare.

The other night I finally finished my last sewing project for the craft fair on Saturday. What sweet relief as I switched off my sewing machine for the last time. It's going on vacation for the rest of the year for sure.

Last weekend one of my best buddies took me for High Tea at The Empress.

Now, this is indulgence at it's finest in my opinion. It costs around $50/person but it's worth it. We got the best table in the room - right in front of a big fireplace.

You start off with strawberries and cream and mimosas.

Then you move on to a special Empress tea blend and 3 tiers of finger sandwiches, truffles, scones and other fantastic items of goodness. It's something I've wanted to do for years and it was well worth the wait.

At work I've been holding out for a wider monitor. I had the typical square size monitor since I started and when you are using Revit - this sucks. At one point I was offered a wider monitor but it was smaller vertically than the one I had. Something told me to wait.

Well, last week it all paid off. Long story short, this is what I ended up with:

The photo doesn't do it justice - that thing is 18" across!

Lots going on here

Just a quick update - mostly photos - on what's going on around here. This place turns into a madhouse this time of year.

The poor Bad Room Mate - he actually puts up with a lot from us. We put scary things (rats, giant flies, giant ants) right next to his food bowls at Halloween. That stupid skull - it jiggles and makes a weird noise when you touch it or bang something nearby. It has long garbage bag hair. So it sits right next to Ziggy's food bowl.

Oh - did I mention that it's eyes light up?

You guys know I can't bake cookies right? Now this is weird....and you won't believe it....but I make these cookies every Halloween and they always turn out. Maybe it's the mental decorations that inspire me to bake things properly?

Don't you dig my eyeball lights and skull mugs?

Work was fun this year too - I organized a costume contest and there were prizes! Almost everyone in the office dressed up. My favourite costume was Captain Kirk but guess what? I won first prize with the Thing 1 and Thing 2 costumes I made a few years ago! A workmate and I donned the red jumpsuits for the day.

I was Thing 2.

I love this pumpkin, I think it's the best one we've carved yet.

We went to the party on Saturday night, but didn't wear the Spy vs. Spy costumes.

I know.

Brad nearly died when I told him that we shouldn't do it. And I was right - those costumes were way too extreme to wear to a house party with about 10 people in attendance. Maybe next year.

Showdown

A couple months ago we bought this cat from Rawbean's Etsy shop for our new nephew. Rawbean came to visit and she brought the cat with her. Brad propped it in the window. Here it is.

So, Rawbean and I went out for dinner and while we were gone something mental happened.

Brad said that Ziggy was walking along, minding his own business and did a double-take when he saw the black cat in the window. He froze, then started stalking it.

This behavior went on forever. Long enough for Brad to get the camera and take a video. That's where these pictures come from.

There are two possibilities - like I said he thought it was a real cat, or the eyes were freaking him out. Ziggy has a 'thing' with eyes. Any type of googly eye is immediately ripped off a toy. There are a bunch of 'eyes' in the bottom of a little basket that holds his toy mice....

At any rate, he sat like this forever.

Stuff I Can't Handle (Part 2)

How's this for randomness? Here is my second list of stuff I can't handle. Click here for the first list. Cause I KNOW you're interested. Here goes:

This sticker that was on an envelope I got for my birthday:

This weathered old scrubber on my buddy's sail boat:

Ziggy's stumpy paws:

Plush Dog No. 1 in Rawbean's Etsy shop:

The Ball

I have this red and blue ball, I don't know where it came from but I know I picked it up somewhere because it's the same ball from my favourite scary movie - The Changeling.

Seriously - check out this clip from the movie - it's the scene with the ball!



So, here is my ball. (sigh)

Ziggy has obviously gotten his teeth and claws into it.

But here is the interesting thing - he doesn't pay any attention to it when we are around so I don't know what he's doing to it. Sometimes he'll walk past it, look at it and bite it a little. Then he will see that I'm watching and get up and walk away.

Lately, almost every day when we come home from work the ball has moved from the living room onto the floor mat in the kitchen. One morning I woke up and the ball was lying in the middle of the bedroom floor.

It's like he KNOWS how that ball scares me to death and he's playing mind games with me!! See? He's a Bad Room Mate!!!

Jabba's Christmas

So we flew to my hometown on the prairies for Christmas to visit my parents. This involved taking The Bad Room Mate in the car and on the ferry to Vancouver so he could stay with my in-laws while we were away. Ziggy is a really calm cat in the car which is super rare and we love him for it. On the way to Vancouver, he ate his lunch in the back seat.

We had to take three planes and drive another hour to get to my home town, it takes all day and we finally arrived at the house around 8:30pm on Christmas Eve. I don't like flying, but I know that once we get there, it will be a great relaxing time.


Once we arrive at the house we all turn into slugs. Christmas Day was busy with my brother and his family coming to visit. My niece (she's three) is the cutest munchkin ever, but I won't post a picture of her because, well it's the internet.

The rest of the week we all lounged around, watched lots of tv, ate tons of baking and chips and dip and mandarin oranges, drank copious amounts of rum and sat by the fireplace.

One of my favourite memories this year is this:
I have a guilty pleasure and it is the movie "You've Got Mail". I know, I know...so cheesy, so formulated, but I love Tom Hanks and every time I see it I cry at the end. So it's right at the end when they meet and tears are welling in my eyes when I hear the voice of my dad who had just walked into the room say "She's a stupe." We all burst out laughing and for once I didn't cry.
(Hey look! Someone took a picture of me watching it!)


Once in awhile we left the house to appease Brad who loves the cold (-25C) weather and the fluffy, crunchy snow. Mom and I agreed to go for a walk on the frozen river. Seriously people, this picture is nice but it was so. freaking. cold. Mom and I were just putting one foot in front of the other to get back to the car while Brad ran circles around us taking pictures of everything.

What a great Christmas, The Quilt went over great (read my post if you haven't, I'm so mad it posted on December 10th and not after Christmas as I would have liked).

Brad gave me a one year pass for Imax so we are off to see something tonight. Great gift huh??

Bad Room Mate #16

This is one of my favourite sights that only happens around Christmas.

No, seriously!! It's absolutely hilarious when you are hanging out on the sofa and you hear a soft *tinkle* sound, look around and notice the tree gently shaking all over...ornaments swaying....gentle rustling....

It's only then that you look down and see the culprit: a stripey tail hanging out at the bottom.

Some Randomness

I knit this toque for Brad. He picked out the yarn! The last toque I knit him was great and lasted a couple of seasons but the yarn he picked pilled quickly so he was wanting a new one.

Our Bad Room Mate has taken to this cardboard box we brought home from our Kamloops trip. No matter where the box is - he's in it. If we move from one room to another, we just pick up the box with him in it and transfer it to the other room.

I'm spending time this week refreshing my brain with the Building Code and Revit. I'm super comfy again with Revit but the code is never a comfortable thing. I'm going to test myself and make sure I know where everything is. I have an old code though and the new one is laid out differently. Ah, well.

On our way into Kamloops last weekend we were planning to stay the night at Brad's parents house (it's empty, they are traveling) and heat up some dinner that we had brought from home. Not very exciting.

When the ferry had almost reached the dock, I had a bright idea. I jumped up from my seat and said to Brad, "Ohmigod! We have the CAR. Let's drive into Vancouver and get some cheap sushi!!"

Now there is a luxury: driving on the ferry.

Our Bad Room Mate II

It happened again, I was walking past the washer/dryer and saw this out of the corner of my eye.

(This is post #100, I'll be sure to celebrate with rum.)

Pins and Needles

5:15 am, I'm sleeping nicely. I'm gently roused out of sleep by a soft sound.....

*tinkle*
*tinkle* *tink*
*tinktink*
*tinkletinkle*

Suddenly I jolt awake, and realize I know that sound!!

I sit up in bed and this is what I see on the floor of my bedroom:

Our Bad Room Mate has jumped to a high spot in our kitchen, grabbed my pincushion and dragged it all the way into the bedroom where he is now sitting happily pulling all the pins out and spitting them all over the floor.

We leap out of bed, yell at him as he cowers off and spend the rest of the time until the alarms goes off searching for pins. We even found one in his water bowl.