My brain is dead. I just sat (and sat some more) at this here computer, re-computerizing the photos section of this site, and henceforth killing my brain cells as one coding problem plagued me after another. But now it is over (the coding part at least), and I am quite happy with the results.
However, if I have learned anything during this experience (aside from retarded amounts of coma-inducing XML), it is this: always embed your captions into your file info. I didn’t have captions on my previous photo section because their placement looked awkward. Now, with the new system, I have more control, and I wanted them back. But well, it was pretty impossible to find a lot of my newspaper captions… because I am dumb and did not embed them into the file info. At my last job, I simply had to write the captions down on paper and hand them to whoever types them into the computer (and yes, a mess if they lost the piece of paper). And that is all I did. I thought I saved hard copies of editions that had photos I liked, but when I searched my storage shed in the backyard, I found that I didn’t save too many copies at all (that may be because the printing press at that paper made every edition worth throwing away). And so, without the captions, I try to remember as much as I can, which is enough in most cases. Some photos I’m at a complete loss for. I had to take out some photos. The internet helps in some cases, but not many. I looked up some old sports brackets, rosters, etc. I dug up info for photos I had no knowledge of before. And thank god, there was one very important photo that I was smart enough to email the names to myself when I quit my job. Of course, I didn’t remember that until like half an hour after I began my epic quest to find the names in a stack of papers. I have all my notepads, every single one of them, from forever, but I’d rather shoot myself before I try to dig through 20,000 names, a thousand of which probably have the note “blue shirt” next to them.
So anyway, if you check out the humans and sports sections and are wondering why there are some captions with a missing name, or a whole missing caption, this is why. It’s not that I’m a bad journalist who forgot to get them, it’s that I’m a bad journalist that didn’t archive her photos properly.
Nowadays, all my critter photos are renamed to the animal’s names within a few hours of taking them, so that’s all the info I really need to know. Most of my old work photos (except the last job of course) have the file info embedded, but are buried on totally unorganized CDs that I will try to get to when my brain isn’t so fried. And I will probably do more internet research later in the week to get the remaining sports captions. There are a few photos that I remember where I took them and can email someone there, and I just may do that a year or two later. You non-photographers are probably wondering what the big deal is, but other photographers will understand. I’m not even sure why I care so much (I don’t even work at newspapers anymore), but well, I just do… and I must have the captions. The end.
Moral of the story: photographers, be not stupid like me. Always embed your captions! ALWAYS!
It’s official. I’m a cat lady. I’m far too young for this, but as of yesterday afternoon, I have nine cats. Yes, nine. Stella, Baby, Jack, Tabasco, Sammy Sumo, Kizzy, Beauregard, Sonoyi, and Misty.
So what gives… how do I go from having two cats to having nine? Well, it’s my house. My house came with seven cats. If you’re wondering how on Earth a house comes with seven cats, it’s because a lady died and left her house to Best Friends on the condition that her cats get to stay there. And I’m the lucky one who gets to take care of them. Lucky to be a cat lady? Yes, lucky. And for $200/month rent, you would feel lucky too. With any other place costing at least $800/month, $200 rent is worth having nine cats… especially when all cat expenses are paid for. I just have to scoop poop, and give them food, meds, and love.
I moved in about two weeks ago (with my two cats), but just got the other seven this week (two on Monday and the other five Friday), because I was waiting until the construction was done (this house was recently gutted and redone). Here in Kanab though, things never work out on schedule (did I mention i was supposed to move in mid-May?), and the house still isn’t completely finished. Finished enough though and the cats can deal with it.
I’ve definitely been a little nervous about introducing seven new cats to mine, but now that they are all in here, there is plenty of room for everyone. It’s a big house. We’ve had a few scary moments, but even at just a day in, things are looking promising.
And so, without further ado, let me introduce you to the crew…
This is Jack. Jack is my favorite. He is one of the most laid-back, awesomest kitties I have ever met. Words can’t even describe how awesome he is.
Sammy Sumo, affectionately referred to as Thammy Thumo, is the FATTEST cat I think I have ever met (and I have met a lot of fat cats). This photo doesn’t really show it, but you’re gonna have to trust me that he is the width of at least two or three normal cats, and has Arnold Schwartzenegger’s shoulders.
Tabasco, also known as Asshole Kitty, scares me. He is the tyrant of the house and rules with a heavy fist. He picks on the other cats and even attacked my leg to the point that my jeans now have bloodstains. He is an uber-sweetheart when the other cats aren’t around (snuggles me like crazy), but if he sees a cat playing on the other side of the house, he may just go investigate and attack. He gets locked in the bathroom when he does this, and spends the night in there by himself to ensure no catfights occur while I’m trying to get my beauty sleep.
Kizzy is very sweet, and very soft. She likes to hide under the bathroom and kitchen cupboards. I wish she wouldn’t hide so much, but in time I’m sure she’ll show her face more.
Beauregard has cancer. I’m told he’s the lover of the bunch, but I haven’t really seen that yet. He’s not too happy with the current situation and likes to hide like Kizzy. In time…
Misty is a bag of bones. She is old and in renal failure. I have to give her subcutaneous fluids everyday, an additional injection through the fluids IV drip, and medication twice a day.
Sonoyi. Sonoyi was my mortal enemy when I first got him on Monday. He didn’t like me and I didn’t like him when he yowled all night long. I got no sleep. I bought ear plugs the next day and can only sleep if he is locked in the cat room on the other side of the house. He has since stopped yowling as much, and has taken a liking to me. He has a huge jaw that reminds me of Scar from the Lion King. He needs fluids every other day and medication twice a day.
And of course, there are my pumpkins Baby and Stella. They are doing really great throughout all this. I was amazed at how well they did at first when I got Misty and Sonoyi on Monday. Key words being “at first.” I guess as long as Misty and Sonoyi stayed out of the bedroom, all was well. But when Misty tried to walk in, Baby flipped out and all the cats started to hate each other. But after a few more days, things settled down. When the other five arrived yesterday, Baby alternately hissed and rubbed up against Sammy Sumo. This is what she does to dogs, hiss and rub. I suspect she simply thought Sammy was a dog. He is that fat. This morning, Baby relinquished the dominance throne to Tabasco, and the whole house is much more harmonious because of it, but he’s still an asshole and can strike without warning. We aren’t in the clear just yet. And until we are, my darling two get me and my master bedroom all to themselves at night.
I’ve just returned from Paria Canyon, one of the world’s “premiere” backpacks. Only a few people are allowed into the canyon each day from any direction, and we had to book our permits over three months in advance (and even then we just barely got in). I’d been waiting day after day for the past three months to go by, and it was well-worth every day I waited. I knew it would be great, but it was so magnificent, so utterly breath-taking, and so much better than I ever imagined it would be.
There were critters everywhere, everything from tiny tadpoles to bighorn sheep. Out of sight, mountain lions lurked, and down below, enormous caterpillars crawled alongside our feet. The canyon walls towered so high above, some areas never even see sun. We spent our days walking in the water and our nights sleeping on sand under the stars. We winded through Buckskin Gulch, the longest slot canyon in the world, and ventured to one of the most remote and largest natural arches in the world too. We climbed over beaver dams and combed through reeds as thick as the South American jungle. And an epic ending to an epic hike, we came out of the canyon just as the Paria River collided with the mighty Colorado at the Grand Canyon. To call it great is an understatement. To call it amazing is too. It was so much more.
Zoe’s new home isn’t new to her. She was fostered by Adele in Los Angeles before coming to Best Friends six weeks ago. Thing is, Zoe was with another dog, Ginger, who she had always been with. Adele wanted to keep them both, but Ginger wouldn’t get along with her other dogs, so instead of separating them, they both came here. But Ginger got adopted last week, by herself, and as soon as she did, Adele came back to officially adopt Zoe. It was a happy reunion.
It always amazes me how much our animals really do remember us. Granted, Adele and Zoe were only separated six weeks, but Zoe knew who was coming as soon as she saw Adele’s car coming around the corner. Every time I had to leave my cats with my parents while I criss-crossed the country interning, I was always knocked over (literally) with love upon our reunion. Every time I go to Park City and see Chloe, months in between, her neurotic squeals just remind me of how much we really bonded in the week before I moved away. Or when I didn’t see my birds for over a year, and when I finally did, they whistled “our” song. Oh yes, they remember us all right. We don’t forget them, and they don’t forget us.
Okay, now go take some aspirin! It’s supposed to help.
This is Sidney (and Pepito). Sidney was found on the side of a road in Iowa, tangled up in her brother’s umbilical cord. He was dead, she was nearly there. She is doing great now, but her foot fell off. Yes, fell off. She is the itty-bittiest, teensy-weeniest kitten I have ever seen.
Okay, now go take another one, just for safe measure.
I woke up this morning to find a photo of mine on the National Geographic website. I screamed. This totally beats my previous high-point of having this blog on CNN.com. Unfortunately, my scream scared my cat, who had her paw on my neck, which then tugged away quickly, ruining the brand new gold chain my mother got me for my birthday. But really, a gold chain is nothing compared to National Geographic, and the scream was well worth its price in gold.
The cat needed blood work done today, so she came to work with me. As a result, instead of only dogs licking my feet under my desk, I also had my darling kitty shedding her hair all over my computer screen. It was glorious. The dogs are on vacation for a week starting tomorrow, so the next week will become “bring your cat to work day week” for me.
Then, this afternoon, I am called over to birds to take some photos. When I arrive, I am really unhappy about the photo they have called me over to take… a photo of a horrible, selfish woman potentially reversing everything we have spent months working for. And well, then it turns out it was all a ruse to get me over there… for a surprise birthday party and ice cream cake. Mmmm, mmmm! As happy as the party made me, I was more happy that that awful woman wasn’t there.
Upon arriving back at my office, melting cake left-overs in hand, Miss Molly passes me the new Dogtown book… my very first book. Of course, not all the photos are mine, but many are and I am absolutely thrilled to be able to add books to the list of items containing my photos.
I then come home and treat myself to a Totino’s Party Pizza. It was only fitting.
Other good birthday news include the fact that work is paying $650 of my $850 rent this month because the new tiling job on the house I was supposed to move into this weekend won’t be done for another month now. Also, my sick bird (whose health took a nosedive the other day and even required a late-night emergency visit from the vet) has pepped up and is looking good. My birds have passed their average expiration date by over ten years and I hope to make it twenty.
I saw my first rattlesnake ever today. I almost smooshed it with my car. It is probably a good thing that I know what they look like now. When I was five, my family and I camped just a few feet from a rattlesnake pit in the Badlands. Of course, we arrived at night and didn’t realize this until morning. Oops. Let’s hope I don’t make the same mistake sometime.
After taking this photo of the hidden kitty this morning, I peeked inside the bear box to meet the furry friend I had just photographed. I was delighted to see that it was my beloved Cooper, one of my absolute favorite felines at work. I actually squealed a little bit. I didn’t recognize him in that little box nor expect to see him there. Since he first arrived at Best Friends from a massive hoarding situation, he had been living in the yurts (where all the cats from that rescue have been), but was recently moved to a different building. The last time I went to see him in the yurts, he wasn’t there and I didn’t know where he was. I wish he had been adopted, but at the same time, I was very happy to see him today. Like whoa. Cooper is my boy. I LOVE him… my little black bear.
