Things that are not terrible.
I have had a pretty gross day today. In the realm of physical grossness, Olive had a very big accident this morning. The second this month, which, all things considered, is really rare. Long story short, she's been pretty constipated on and off, and we're finding ways to manage that because she can't go to the bathroom on her own, obviously. (Miralax isn't working so well anymore, we already increase water in her wet food, catnip is surprisingly effective, we're looking into more specialized softeners from our vet.) Well, the floodgates opened this morning and didn't stop until poor Bean had had three baths. Admirably, she's forgiven me for this, but I spent my morning CLEANING ALL THE THINGS.
So I figure, if I'm gonna clean all the things, I might as well also clean out Nox & Mim's crates and wash the fabrics in them. We crate trained them as kittens (otherwise we'd never ever sleep). As adult cats, they still prefer "bedtime" in their crates (if you say "bedtime" to Mim, she runs and jumps in her crate). They're basically like enclosed cat beds-- Nox's has an actual cat bed in it and Mim's has a fluffy towel, according to her preference.
I should have seen it coming. Nox is very sensitive to strong smells, particularly things he judges stinky. He will spend 5 minutes covering up his own litterbox, and will go behind Mim to cover hers better. He also attempts to 'cover' the tile when Olive eats messily, and once, hilariously, when Jason farted. He is my OCD Virgo Cat. So Olive's accident this morning triggered something in him, and he got sick all over the back of his crate. I guess he was trying to hide it, because he did it under his cat bed, then covered it up. I assume it's related to Olive's accident, but I'm still going to keep a close eye on him just in case.
I have 3 loads of 4 done, laundry-wise, and then I need to shower myself.
In the realm of purely frustrating grossness, I got to pearl 84 on a 90 pearl knotting assignment, and the damn silk snapped. I had to start over entirely.
So, back to reality after an otherwise awesome weekend.
I got to have coffee with Anna, I got to go on a long hike in Patapsco with Flissy and Steve, and I got to go to Longwood Gardens with Abby.
OH MAN, THE GARDENS.
In the daytime, we saw the conservatory-- I love the childrens' garden, with its purple leaved-plants, its rosemary (I stuck my face right in the bush!), and its velvety geraniums, not to mention the gargoyles, water features, and Labyrinth-esque chimes. We checked out the lilypads, with its water lilies and shy mimosa that closes up when you touch it, we saw the orchids, including Sharry Babies that smell like chocolate, and we smelled a peculiar kind of Canary Island Lavender whose scent was frustratingly unidentifiable until I pinged it as lemon pepper.
We took two full trips 'round the light installations-- once in twilight and once in full dark, after wine. It was like wandering into fairyland. Over 20,000 color-changing solar lights in one installation alone, lighting up the pathways like magical will 'o the wisps.
There were also Water Towers made from recycled plastic bottles stacked together, paired with ethereal singing and a rising blue moon. It was utterly enchanting.
There's a whole set of photos from the trip here.
And now, I must go to switch over my laundry, then get back to pearl knotting.
So I figure, if I'm gonna clean all the things, I might as well also clean out Nox & Mim's crates and wash the fabrics in them. We crate trained them as kittens (otherwise we'd never ever sleep). As adult cats, they still prefer "bedtime" in their crates (if you say "bedtime" to Mim, she runs and jumps in her crate). They're basically like enclosed cat beds-- Nox's has an actual cat bed in it and Mim's has a fluffy towel, according to her preference.
I should have seen it coming. Nox is very sensitive to strong smells, particularly things he judges stinky. He will spend 5 minutes covering up his own litterbox, and will go behind Mim to cover hers better. He also attempts to 'cover' the tile when Olive eats messily, and once, hilariously, when Jason farted. He is my OCD Virgo Cat. So Olive's accident this morning triggered something in him, and he got sick all over the back of his crate. I guess he was trying to hide it, because he did it under his cat bed, then covered it up. I assume it's related to Olive's accident, but I'm still going to keep a close eye on him just in case.
I have 3 loads of 4 done, laundry-wise, and then I need to shower myself.
In the realm of purely frustrating grossness, I got to pearl 84 on a 90 pearl knotting assignment, and the damn silk snapped. I had to start over entirely.
So, back to reality after an otherwise awesome weekend.
I got to have coffee with Anna, I got to go on a long hike in Patapsco with Flissy and Steve, and I got to go to Longwood Gardens with Abby.
OH MAN, THE GARDENS.
In the daytime, we saw the conservatory-- I love the childrens' garden, with its purple leaved-plants, its rosemary (I stuck my face right in the bush!), and its velvety geraniums, not to mention the gargoyles, water features, and Labyrinth-esque chimes. We checked out the lilypads, with its water lilies and shy mimosa that closes up when you touch it, we saw the orchids, including Sharry Babies that smell like chocolate, and we smelled a peculiar kind of Canary Island Lavender whose scent was frustratingly unidentifiable until I pinged it as lemon pepper.
We took two full trips 'round the light installations-- once in twilight and once in full dark, after wine. It was like wandering into fairyland. Over 20,000 color-changing solar lights in one installation alone, lighting up the pathways like magical will 'o the wisps.
There were also Water Towers made from recycled plastic bottles stacked together, paired with ethereal singing and a rising blue moon. It was utterly enchanting.
There's a whole set of photos from the trip here.
And now, I must go to switch over my laundry, then get back to pearl knotting.