He can't be that bad......

I saw a story on the news in which President Obama was saying that he's going to be cheering for the Steelers tomorrow during the Super Bowl.

OK, people, that clinches it for me.

Any fan of the Steelers is Ok in my book. :)

Equal pay measure.....

Today, President Obama signed into law a piece of legislation that would allow workers---not just women---to sue if they are not receiving equal pay for their job as others in the same position within their company. Here's the link if you want to read the story:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28910789

While I like that this probably means women will not be shortchanged as much now that they have the right to demand equal pay, I do wish that we didn't have to sue to get it. My dream is to someday see women making the same amount of money as their male counterparts, without the threat of a lawsuit to get it. But for now, I guess this will have to suffice.

If this is fat.....

....then I must be obese.

I turned on the noon news today to catch the latest weather, and there was a story about how "fat" Jessica Simpson has gotten. Ugh.

For starters, with the economy in the crapper, people losing their jobs left and right and other serious issues facing this country, since when is the size of any woman considered top news? Seriously?

I am appalled at my fellow members of the media for even making an issue of this. First of all, I hate the microscope that is placed on women, especially women in the film and music industry. If you're not a size negative 2, then you're fat. Puh-lease people. If Jessica Simpson is fat, then I must be obese. Better call Weight Watchers right now!

We wonder why the young women of this country are obsessed with appearance, oftentimes engaging in dangerous eating patterns in the name of being "thin." Well, look no further. This kind of garbage is the number one reason for it. Marilyn Monroe---who is still considered one of the great beauties of all time----was actually a size 12. I didn't hear anyone in those days calling her "fat." And rightly so. God made women to have curves. We need to embrace ourselves, whether we're naturally a size 2 or a size 16. Beauty, my friends, isn't skin deep. And it certainly isn't based on our weight.

I say go Jessica. You are a good role model for what a healthy woman is supposed to look like!

If it's not worth praying about.....

Our pastor started a new sermon series about emotions that get in the way of our relationship with God this week. The first sermon was about worry. And boy, was that a topic I know a lot about. Seems like worry has been my middle name these days. Not much is going according to plan these days---well, according to MY plan anyway. Our pastor joked that if you have a stomach ulcer from worrying, then you aren't placing your worries in the right hands---God's. I listened with a heavy heart on Sunday to what our pastor was preaching and realized every word of it applied to me---including the part about ulcers.

Two days later, I was taking my son to preschool, and saw yet another reminder that worry is futile. The sign on the church marquis where his preschool is located had its own message about worry. It said: "If it's not worth praying about, then it's not worth worrying about."

Twice in the same week I've been hit with the same message. And it's a smart lesson to heed. So I'm going to do my best to place my fears and worries in the hands of God. I'm not sure I'll be 100% successful, but I'm going to do my best----or develop an ulcer trying. :)

I should have known......

....when my day started off with Connor peeing on me, that it was all going to be downhill from there.

We've been potty training again pretty hard, and have had minimal accidents in the last 2 weeks. Connor always goes first thing in the morning, so I set about putting him on the potty as usual. Only this time, he didn't quite make it. As soon as the pull up came off, he peed. All over me, all over the floor, all over the bathroom. I laughed it off and went about my day.

But you know, not much has gone right since then. Seems like everything I set out to do, I get "peed" on and never get it done. I think it's Isaak's turn to take Connor to the potty tomorrow morning. Maybe then I'll have a better day! :)

SNOW FUN!

I was just beginning to wonder if Connor would ever get to use his snow pants and snow boots I bought him two months ago.......and lo and behold, he DID! And he LOVED IT! He rolled down the hill, threw snow balls and even helped build Steve, the Snowman. It was good stuff. I say bring on the snow! We love it!

Weird sympathy....

OK, I know, two posts in the same day.

But I just opened the mail, and found a card from Twinbrook Animal Clinic. If you've been following my cat drama, you know that's where we took Zorro, and "Other Kitty," when we were trying to help them. And as you all know, we had to put the other kitty down.

Twinbrook sent us a sympathy card for Other Kitty. Everyone there signed it, and some of them thanked us for trying to do what was best for two feral cats that we didn't have to help. It was kind of nice. But at the same time, weird. We didn't really know Other Kitty, or really have a chance to bond with him the way we've bonded with Zorro, but it was still hard to make the decision to euthanize him. So it's nice to know that other people recognize that was hard for us to do. Twinbrook is so great. I don't think I can say that enough.

Another great read.....

I posted awhile ago about an author I really liked named Lynn Austin. Isaak bought me one of her books for my birthday and I was so captivated I read 3 more of her books within the next 2 weeks.
Well, my sister saw my post about liking this author and got me another one of her books for Christmas, called Gods and Kings. It's the first part of a five-part series based on the rise and fall of King Ahaz and his son King Hezekiel. When I read it, I couldn't believe how exciting it was since it was based on Old Testament figures. I didn't remember the real stories of these people in the Bible being this captivating. So I went back and reread the passages, mostly in 2Kings and Isaiah, about these people. While Ms. Austin took a lot of liberties in making up dialogue that is not in the Bible, she did an excellent job of not over dramatizing it. I was impressed with what she had done and found that it got me reading parts of the Bible I haven't read in a long time. I am the first to admit I'm not keen on the Old Testament. But her book brought renewed life to it for me.

After reading the first one, I reserved the second book in the series from our library. Read it in 2 days. Now I'm onto the third one, which I've requested and am anxiously awaiting.

If you love the Bible and love a good read, this series is for you. I highly recommend it!

Visiting the spot.....

OK, Zorro is starting to creep me out. For the last 20 minutes, he's been sitting at the spot where we buried other kitty, just staring at it. And this is not the first time he's done it.

We buried the other kitty about 4 feet down. You'd think Zorro wouldn't be able to smell him. But I'm guessing that he can. I called the vet to ask, and they said cats are very sensitive and he likely does know the other cat is there. She said he's probably confused because he can smell the other cat, but not find him. How sad.

I think the other kitty would be happy to know that at least Zorro is visiting his grave.

Have no fear.....

.....our opossums are well medicated.

I think it's safe to say that the opossums that live in our neighbor's yard (and who frequently visit our outdoor kitty's food bowl) are among the safest opossums in the area. Why, you ask? Because they are highly medicated.

When I brought Zorro home from the vet, I was instructed to give him antibiotics for the next 10 days. They are pills, so I've been chiding them in pill pockets and putting them in his food. For the first three days, I thought he was eating them. Then I realized (when I saw it with my own two eyes) that those darn opossums were eating them! So if they happen to have any nasty infections, they are all better now.

Once I caught on to what they were doing, I started crushing the pills and putting them in Zorro's tuna. So far, that seems to be the only thing those pesky opossums won't eat.

So if you are visiting my house and run across one of them, have no fears about being bitten. They are clean. :)

Prayer for the unemployed.....

I saw this news story this morning, and I wanted to share the link to it. Here it is:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28520261/?GT1=43001

I know we'll be using that prayer given our current situation. This has not been a kind environment for seeking employment, and I fear we have a long road ahead of us.

I'm happy to report.....

That Zorro, Cat of Mystery, has been saved!

But as you can see from the photo, he isn't all that thrilled about his time in a cage.

We found him in the trap this morning, so I hurried him off to Twinbrook Veterinary Clinic in Middlesex and they saw him right away. As best they could tell, the leg wasn't broken. He had a huge wound there, probably from another cat (maybe even from the other stray we had euthanized earlier this week). The tested him for all sorts of diseases, and he was pronounced clear of anything. They then vaccinated him against several things, including rabies. They said if we can trap him again in 3 weeks, they will neuter him. But I think we're going to let that other organization, Cat Management Group, do that, because they will do it for free.

Right now, Zorro is sleeping in the cage in our garage. When the anesthesia they gave him wears off, we'll let him go. I have to figure out how to feed him antibiotics for the next 10 days, though, which might prove hard. He seems to eat anything, so I'm hoping hiding it in tuna will help. I'd like to try to keep him inside, and the vet said that might be more possible once he's neutered, because it'll calm him down some. But for now, the vet suggested we release him back outside and make sure he has a warm place to sleep and food and hope for the best.

Keep praying for this cat, because he really is a kind soul who is in need of love. And if you're ever looking for a vet, give Twinbrook a try. They were the only place that helped us since he was a stray, and they were great about working with us since we have limited funds to pay for services. I'm thankful to them for everything they did!

The cat saga continues......

I am becoming quite convinced that Zorro, Cat of Mystery, is much smarter than we are.

If you've been reading along, you already know the issues of the last 3 days. If you haven't, go back and read the history before you finish this post so it all makes sense.

Zorro came out today, so we know he's still among the living. He's still limping on that paw. I got a pretty good look at it and suspect it's a wound of some type, possible from a BB gun. But I think the impact still broke the leg. Not sure 100%, but it's a good bet by looking at how it's dangling there.

Anyway, we baited the humane trap again with tuna. Worked for the other kitty. Not Zorro. He walked in just far enough to smell it, but turned around and went back out before he tripped the mechanism to close the door. So I put some other tasty stuff in there, hoping to get his attention. Let's hope it works. My greatest fear is that I will not be able to catch this cat to help him, and he'll walk around in pain for however long he lives.

Another bit of good news is that I found a place in Pittsburgh that neuters/spays stray and feral cats, as well as vaccinates them, free of charge. Then they release them back to where they were found. The cat is happier, and people are happier because it doesn't keep producing more feral cats. If you want to learn more about them, go here: http://www.homelesscat.org/ We're hoping they will possibly neuter Zorro for us. If his leg can be fixed, it's our plan to have the regular vet do that, and then hopefully get the homeless cat folks to neuter him. Then we'll turn him loose again and keep caring for him. I doubt he'd ever be content as an inside cat, so this is the next best thing. Wish us luck!