Well, I finally got around to going over and chatting with Christy, for the first time since she had the baby. I never really got up the nerve, before. Anyway, his name's Dylan, and he just had his first birthday. He's not walking yet, and can just crawl. Chubby little blond. It was driving me nuts, not knowing his name. Mike came home while I was talking to Christy. I'm always going to wonder just what he thinks of us, but I suppose we're lucky he tolerates us. Some people would complain to the village the first time a goat crossed the street.

I didn't summon sufficient gall to ask whether they're married. Never will. One of the boys said I certainly would've when I was five; maybe it's a pity that was ten years ago....

And to continue the theme of readerly indignation, that evil sadistic sorceress over at Days in the Life has posted an excerpt from her latest book, Chalice, just in case there was the faintest chance in five universes that any of her readers weren't going to stalk their local booksellers, or equivalent, for the next. . . .thirty-eight days until it's released. That's what really gets me: that she could have the cruelty to do that when there's this much time left. If it were the day before, or three days, or a week, okay. But five weeks?! It's reader abuse!

Siiiiiiigh............

Okay. So I'm reading W-Juliet II. The last two volumes of W-Juliet were finally scanned, I devoured them both, and we all breath a sigh of relief at getting through fourteen volumes. W-J II is, in the mangaka's words, dessert. Okay. So Makoto, who's taking the big-pay jobs so he and Ito can have a proper wedding ceremony and a honeymoon (they're registered but haven't had a ceremony), has been cast as the male lead in this adaptation of a "novel". AND IT JUST SO HAPPENS THAT THIS "NOVEL" IS A MANGA BY THE SAME BLOODY MANGAKA!! OF COURSE THE WRITER WROTE THE CHARACTER WITH HIM IN MIND!!! AND HE'S DOING A MOVIE AND I HAVEN'T EVEN READ CHAPTER FIVE YET, BECAUSE IT'S NOT SCANNED!! *&%($(%(&%(&%!!!!!

That's better. It's funny, but the sheer nerve....

Well, I finally got around to looking at the new pics here. Were you guys there for a couple of days? And how come one portrait-format pic is vertical and the other is horizontal?

And I just gave Lark her first bath. She was utterly miserable, and she'll probably never voluntarily enter the bathroom again. I didn't have the heart to shampoo her. Next time, of course.....(Buahahahahaha!!!) She really did look so funny, though! I think she's forgiven me, but I doubt she'll forget. And it's times like this I wish we'd put a non-slip mat in the tub.

Huge thunderstorm last night. The power went out when I was in the middle of mopping the kitchen floor, and since one can't mop in utter darkness....I had gotten the vacuuming done, though, which is the important thing with Baron theoretically confined to the kitchen. Dog hair accumulation has shot up. I'm even running over the mud room now, which Baron hates. He's usually in the kennel when I'm doing the floor, and he always snaps at the vaccuum.

Mom is being stricter than usual about people getting on the comp during school, and so far it's one person getting kicked off per day. Peter was yesterday, Doug's today, and with any luck it'll be Owen tomorrow, since he's getting on everyone's nerves. He's trying to get me kicked off at the moment, but Mom's letting me blog. So kind.

And the single most-listened-to group at the moment is Rammstein. Doug's playing Los just now, which is one of my favorites. For the most part I prefer the Yoko Kanno station on Pandora. Some good stuff comes up, besides the Kanno of course.

These are the pics that show her coloring best. There are others that better demonstrate her cuteness, but they're on the other computer. Anyway, I took these yesterday at B's.

Amanda, dissatisfied with the front porch box to which her kittens were exiled when she kept attacking the puppy in my room, has moved them into a clothes bin in Doug's room. Or so I gathered. Nor do there seem to be any clothes in it, which seems....inconducive to comfort.

We spent today in the garden, Mom and Lark and I, while the guys worked on the fence. Lark found a nice spot under what we hope is a hollyhock, and slept all day. Again. Whenever someone makes a teasing remark about how much we sleep, I always say she's growing. I hope so. And I think we keep freaking Dad out. She tends to sleep like the dead, and he doesn't catch on right away when we say so.

I'll try to post the other pics later.

puppies, II

I've been putting this off since Tuesday, when Dad and I went up past Fremont to look at Aussie pups. They had one female, a black tri, for $225. Her name is Lark, she divides her time between the front yard and my room with a little bit in the garden and living room, and she's absolutely adorable. I'll post pics eventually.

Did I mention that I finally brought a ram home Friday night? His name is Gan, to match Stein, as their names both mean Stone but in different languages, but Gan's name hasn't quite adhered yet. I just think Gan Fall, who is completely irrelevant but whom you may find a reference to if you comb through all the posts labeled "one piece". Maybe. It'll be the Skypiea arc. Wondering if this post merits an OP tag.

Also Amanda is having her kittens in my closet, after an entire day of watching them wrestle for precedence in there. It was simultaneously amusing and unnerving. Court lost one of hers and is down to four. Dunno if Macchan is done yet, and if so how many there are. I'll check next time I go up there. She started out having contractions on my bed, having spent several hours there already while the kittens wriggled, and then moved to the closet. She took the box with the floor-level entrance, I was amused to note. Anyway, she is quite my favorite among our cats, and I am quite flattered by her choosing my closet, after almost having them on my bed. On towels, fortunately, so the slight mess she made before moving will not necessitate washing the blanket.

I've been reading most of the day. I started out rereading Heyer's Frederica, one of her most constantly hilarious. Then I finished Lens of the World, first in a trilogy by R.A. MacAvoy which I should maybe wait a few years before continuing. I like her, I like her characters, but I have a feeling it's going to be hard going. The single-volume ones were less ambitious and more enjoyable. I think I'll finish with Patricia A. McKillip, recommended by Robin and most of her fans. I started her Riddle-master trilogy after I finished Lens and Macchan had moved to the closet, and it really is quite good. I expect you,* being a fastidious snob who doesn't believe in reading for pleasure, would consider it quite unworthy of your time, but she has a clear descriptive style and engaging characters, humorously portrayed.

*Philip-oniisan, in the unlikely but precedented event that someone else is reading this.