Animal Updates!

Cheech comes to say hi with his new haircut

Today, I graduate with my Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing with an emphasis in Fiction and Screenwriting. Given that I've been in school since I was two, this is a surreal moment. It will certainly take some getting used to. And today of all days, it is storming. The end of May in California, and the rain is pelting down! I don't mind because our drought has finally been alleviated and this rain means less likelihood of fires later in the summer, but it will add a bit more tension to today's proceedings, especially if my grandma (who has to be in a wheelchair) feels well enough to attend.

Let's hope all goes well!

Today I have some pictures of the animals. But first... here's a funny story.

Yesterday, the high school was doing a blood drive so Alex donated. While she was waiting for it to be her turn, her friend Rachel passed by on her way out and jokingly slapped her name tag onto Alex. Alex didn't think anything of it and filled out the forms then donated a pint of blood. My mom and I both have the rarest blood type in the world (AB-) so I'm curious what my sister's type will be when we find out (especially since, once again, someone mistook us for twins yesterday). Anyway, she donated the blood then went and sat down at the snack table to drink juice for a few minutes when all the sudden she started feeling queasy.

She thought she was about to throw up, then felt light headed. A man rushed over and said "She's really pale" and several more helped her to her feet and tried to lead her to a bed, but apparently she announced that she was about to faint, then did.

She woke up with a bunch of people in lab coats staring down at her, calling out, "Rachel?! Rachel? Rachel!" over and over. Alex blinked. Logically, she decided that she must be pulling a SpongeBob and have entered someone else's dream, so she ignored them for a few seconds. "Rachel? Can you hear us?" Then she recognized the gym and realized where she was, and said, "...My name is Alex." They all began to chuckle then.

But could you just imagine? It's like a scene from a movie where someone wakes up and forgets who they are. We've been laughing about it all day. Apparently, the doctors were excited because they got to ring an emergency bell and everyone rushed over to tend to her. She felt cold and dizzy the rest of the day but should be okay.

Now... onto the animal updates!

About two weekends ago, Kate made this beautiful garland for Black.

Alex helps the Commie strike a pose

Black and his momma, Froggy, snuggle. They look pretty good for 16 and 17!

Froggy enjoys the warmth. When Alex was a toddler, Froggy would sit on the rock wall like this, watching over her as she played outside. She's such a good mommy. And she's obsessed with cheese, just like Teyla and Comanche.

Teyla has issues with meeting new people. She barks and barks and barks, and sometimes she nips if someone reaches for her. Though Kate is over quite often, Toot still sometimes barks at her so we've told her not to pet Teyla yet, just in case. Though as you can see in this clip, Teyla seems ready to make friends!

There was also a big surprise for Chee Chee... a new bed! I bought this one in the hopes that it would make him more comfortable when we go camping and he has no grass to lie on. Teyla is small enough that she can fit in a chair and has had her own chair since she was a puppy. At first Teyla thought she could claim the new bed, so Comanche still isn't sure if it's for him yet. He's going to be nine this September and has some arthritis issues that we're going to discuss with the vet soon, so I hope this helps him stay comfy!

Yesterday while jogging, a tiger swallow tail butterfly crossed my path with four painted ladies in hot pursuit. I couldn't tell if they were attracted to it, or readying to dive-bomb it like songbirds on a raven, but the chase went on for as far as I could see. My idealized image of butterflies was shattered! Are they territorial? Here are some pictures of the painted ladies that have been so bountiful these past few days that they have literally been falling at my feet.



And now for the most shocking picture of them all. While watching Be Good Johnny Weir a while back, there was a clip of one of his competitor skaters. The young man (forgive me, I have already forgotten his name) looks from the scores to the camera, and in that instant... I realized that I'd seen that face before. It's Black! The Commie! He rarely looks at you, but when he does, he looks just like that!

Black as a human

And since at least two of you asked... I got that shirt off of e-bay. It was a little expensive, and it kept shifting to be like "look at this boob! Now look at the other!" but it was worth it. The size ran a little big so I had to pin the halter strap. I bought it here. They have a lot of cute designs that look a little impractical yet gorgeous.

Mackenzie's Momma -- Haha I love your comment, and you're dead on with your observations. That door does look like a mouth, that pose does look like an action figure, and those cups are totally cheap. But given that the state schools now have so little money that they have to shut down several times a month (furlough days), I'm not surprised!

Hammy -- Thank you, and I totally (obviously) agree! Culture has this bizarre practice of trying to teach people that once you reach a certain age, you're not supposed to enjoy playing. That's a tragedy, and is one of the biggest sources of distress in adult life. If you don't feel okay to cut loose and be childish and playful and ridiculous, you live a sad life, in my opinion!

Tracie -- Thank you! I'm hoping that I won't spend a lot of time unemployed, but given the current state of world affairs, that's an unfortunate reality. Matt will be flattered. I love him and he's one of my closest friends, and is quite the McKay, if you can imagine. I think he and David Hewlett were separated at birth (don't worry Matt -- that is a compliment!)