Trying Times for Mr. Pop

Well, it’s that time of year again. The time we head out to Mr. Pop’s family and extended family for Thanksgiving dinner. There will be four liberals at the table and about two dozen or so serious, dyed in the wool, you betcha they voted for McCain, conservative republicans.

I suggested to Mr. Pop that I volunteer to say grace this year and close with, We thank you god for Obama being our next president. Mr. Pop didn’t think too much of that idea, even though he did laugh when he thought about it.

After my unfortunate utterance of the “F” bomb at the dining table two Thanksgivings ago, I guess I better just keep my mouth shut and smile a lot. When I made that infamous verbal gaffe, it was because I had dropped some food on my sister in law’s beautiful tablecloth. After I said the word and the earth stood silently still for a few moments, I profusely apologized for both the word and the spill.

I don’t know how this is going to be received by the family, but Mr. Pop and I are going to request that anyone who is planning to give us a gift for Christmas, take that money and instead, buy food to donate to their local food pantry. Hopefully all will agree and in lieu of opening gifts we will all open our hearts this especially difficult and trying holiday season.

We are off today and we will be back sometime Friday. As it happens every year, this will be an interesting few days. Wish Mr. Pop luck as he tries his level best to keep peace on earth and goodwill toward wife and family. He’ll have his work cut out for him.

Happy Thanksgiving to each and every one of you and your friends and your family too, from the Pop family and of course, Fred the Cat.

See you guys back here maybe over the weekend and if not, Monday for sure.

Sarah Palin says Thanksgiving grace before dinner

Our heavenly Father, we thank ya for this food we’re about to receive. Also a big shout out to the first heavenly Dude, your son, Jesus. He’s totally awesome!

We thank you for this food and all the fixins we are about to eat up and such. I am sure by now you saw the video of me, Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska, pardoning that turkey last week. Did ja get a shot of what was going on behind me? I was showing my lipsticked pit bull side as I stood just out of spewin’ range of that the blood spewin’ turkey head cuttin’ off machine thingie. I was pretty cool, huh?

I have a long list of things to be thankful for this year but I’ll have to get back to ya with that. You will notice that John McCain’s name won’t be on that list because he got in my way. The RNC will be on there for allowin’ me to play fancy dress up there for a little while. On that list also will be the names of my children, my two boys, Sack and Sprig along with my three lovely daughters, Blister, Pillow and Pooper. I have been kinda busy recently runnin’ for president…oops, I mean vice president, so the first Dude of Alaska has been dealing with the kids and such as. Around here we call him a daddy machine on a snow machine. Drill baby, drill!

In closing Father, I’ll just ask that all the terrorist burn in hell, that our country supports our troops, that Barack Obama stops palin’ around with terrorists and that Putin doesn’t try to sneak over into the US via Alaska. I’m as always vigilant and on watch for him. Can you count on me? You betcha!

Here’s a big flirty wink just for you big holy guy, from me, Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska.

I’m sending a great big old Alaskan Amen to You. Talk to you again in 2012. I may be askin’ for a little favor or two at that time.
Happy Thanksgiving Father! See ya!

Suggestion from Fred the Cat

Here’s a phrase a lot of humans need to learn and say over the months to come and now especially before the holidays. The phrase is, “No, we can’t afford it”. It’s time humans learned the phrase and what it means because it seems all too many are not aware of it or how to use it. Plus it’s not a bad time for parents to teach it to their kids and explain to them what it means. It’s might be the most valuable lesson they can be taught.

That’s your sage, or should I say catnip, advice from me. Probably should stick with one herb at a time.

Have a wonderful weekend with your honeys

Sincerely,
Fred the Cat (the cat who loves you guys!)

Everybody Has One so Let’s Talk About It

I bet you have one. Maybe it’s in your kitchen. Mine are located there. But I bet you don’t have three of them. How about four?

I’m talking about the “junk drawer” or in my case, drawers. We have a twenty two drawers in our kitchen and over the years four of them morphed into infamous junk drawers.

Since we have been having chilly weather this week, I became kind of frisky and decided to clean out all of those drawers. Oh, the junk I found. I found pens that died of ink thirst a long time ago. I found matchbooks from places I have never heard of. Then there were the soda straws still in their paper wrapper. Don’t ask. I found instructions about how to care for plants I don’t even remember owning. There were cardboard coasters from assorted bars and restaurants. There was the little packet of incense that had long ago turned into incense dust and little sticks. Of course there were keys that I have no idea what they could open or when. Included in the junk was a half box of red, white and blue birthday cake candles. Since I haven’t baked a cake for who knows how long and don’t remember ever using candles that color, I am accusing those rascals of sneaking into my house. Most of all there were coupons and recipes that I have never used and never will. Junk! Junk! Junk!

The most unusual thing I discovered was a tiny turtle made out of sea shells and to top off his looks, he was wearing a tiny little pair of wire rim glasses. I couldn’t toss him in the trash can with all the other junk and I couldn’t recycle him, so he survived and is sitting on the windowsill in my kitchen. He looks rather dashing.

I am now proud to say I have four drawers that have gone through a complete cleaning and not a piece of junk remains here except the little shell turtle. See what happens when the weather gets cold and the frisky feelings return, some of us clean our drawers.

Panic should not have its rewards

A few weeks back the government said we were all gonna die financially. The banks were frozen and without a bailout the financial world as we knew it would collapse.

So what did you do and what did I do? We wrapped our little fists tight around every dollar and cent we had. Now the big news is that the consumer isn’t spending and consuming as much as we should.

Well duh, what did they expect from us? Even if we aren’t losing our homes to foreclosure or losing our jobs, when the government pushes the panic button, they should expect people to panic.

Hopefully the next administration will consist of people with forethought and a little moderation, especially when it comes to panic button pushing.

This administration has sold a lot based on panic button pushing. The Patriot Act and the rush to invade Iraq come to mind quickly. They have yelled, “Panic” and in rushed the congress with buckets of votes to put out what they believed to be a fire. Some of these votes I believe were cast in good faith and trust.

The new administration should either be retire the panic button or place it on a much higher shelf. The use of panic should not be an agenda and should not have its rewards.

My Change

Other than the Molly fiasco and heartbreak, I find my whole outlook on life has changed so much since the evening of November 4th of this year. It is a change I thought would maybe never come again.

For the first time in so many years I am looking forward to the holiday season. I’m looking forward to decorating and all that comes with the sweet sights and feeling of this time of the year. I’m starting to wonder if I have been in some form of depression for the last eight years.

I know that our troops are still targets in Iraq and Afghanistan. I know our economy is tanking and people are suffering as a result. I know our country is in a total mess. I know all this has not changed one bit since the evening of Nov. 4th, but one thing has changed, at least for me. I really believe there is a reason to hope and believe that things can and will get better. That’s not some platitude, that’s something I believe with all my heart.

When President-elect Obama talked about “change”, damn, he already made it happen, at least for me. I don’t know what changes he can make in DC, but I know what changes he has caused just in my heart and mind. I already owe him a dept of gratitude just for that.

Something about Obama you might have missed

For some reason in September, I totally missed this.

“While we’ve endorsed hundreds of congressional candidates for election, , both Democrats and Republicans, we’ve never before endorsed a presidential candidate. We have members on the left, in the center, and on the right, and we knew it could be controversial to choose either party’s candidate for the top office in the nation. But in an era of sweeping presidential power, we must weigh in on this most important political race in the country. Standing on the sidelines is no longer an option for us.

I’m proud to announce today that the HSLF board of directors—which is comprised of both Democrats and Republicans—has voted unanimously to endorse Barack Obama for President. The Obama-Biden ticket is the better choice on animal protection, and we urge all voters who care about the humane treatment of animals, no matter what their party affiliation, to vote for them.”
-Sept.22, 2008-
Michael Markarian
Humane Society Legislative Fund

It just gets better and better doesn’t it? Be sure and follow the link and if you don’t read the article, which I sure hope you will, scroll down and check out the photo of Obama and Baby. Baby is not the new white house dog, she’s a poster dog for what happens in puppy mills. The article explains why they couldn’t endorse McCain. Thank goodness the voters elected President-elect Obama. The animals are grateful too.

My Close Call

Hey folks, thanks for your concern but I’m fine. The dog just knocked me against the door really hard. Mr. Pop grabbed the dog before any other damage could be done. The Pops had me checked out just to be sure I had no broken bones. I’m kinda sore, and I sure am glad Mr. Pop was so close by.

You know, I had never met a dog who was my enemy before. Murphy and I were buddies. I would walk up to him and smoosh my head into all that soft white fur. The only time he would get testy was if he was eating and I got too close to his food bowl, but even then he would just give me a look that said, Back off!

So the dog had to be returned to the shelter and the vet’s helper can go through the channels of adoption from there. I know Pop’s heart was broken yesterday. All you had to do was look at her to know. But from this cat’s point of view, I like the return of my serenity. All that barking and growling wasn’t pleasant. We cats need our naps. Those little catnaps that begin about eight in the morning and end about five in the afternoon.

Again thank you for all your comments this past week, it means a lot to Pop and to me.

Have a good weekend and grab a catnap if you get a chance

Sincerely,
Fred the Cat (the cat who loves you guys)

Not Good

Where to start? We had an unfortunate incident here last night. Molly slipped past us last night after dinner and got to Fred the Cat. Fred the Cat will be okay but it was ugly. Sadly we have determined that this isn’t going to work with Molly. We can’t take a chance on this happening again. This was Fred’s home first and it will be his last home. If there is any good news to come from this it is that an employee at the veterinarian’s office wants to give Molly a home and this employee has no other animals in her home. My heart is broken, but I have to do what I believe is right. That’s about all I want to say right now.

Houston, Molly has landed!

After a phone call yesterday and a message we left, we quickly got a return call from the lady at the shelter. She had taken Molly and her crate to the shelter’s thrift shop and was waiting for us. The thrift shop is much closer to our home than the shelter is by miles.

When we arrived at the thrift shop there was a sign on the door that said “Closed”. There was another older lady inside and she pointed to the closed sign and shook her head no. I looked at Mr. Pop and he looked at me. I held my copy of the adoption certificate up so the older lady could see it. Still she shook her head no. At this point I was about ready to tell Mr. Pop to start up the car and we would create a new drive-in window for this thrift shop.

Thankfully the lady we had spoken with on the phone was inside and saw us at the door. She opened the door and Molly came bounding over to me. We had doggie licks and tears all mixed up together.

So Molly is home. She and Fred the Cat have smelled one another under the door, but they haven’t met yet. One thing at a time and easy as she goes. There is plenty of time for meet and greet.

So far Molly is a perfect lady. She had one little pee-pee accident but that was because I missed her signal to me that she needed to go out. She doesn’t jump on the furniture or go where she shouldn’t. I gave her some of the plush toys that were given to Murphy when he was beyond the point of playing with them. She was like a kid at Christmas. Man, does she love the sound of a squeaky toy and man, we love her!

No Molly, at least not yet

I don’t know what happened yesterday, but nothing did. The lady from the shelter told us Sunday that she would call me early Monday morning to arrange to bring Molly to our house. I waited and waited for that call. It didn’t come. We were assured Sunday that we were as good as gold as far as our adoption application.

I called the shelter to inquire what had happened but the shelter is closed on Mondays. I sent an email to the address on the shelters site asking what had happened. I had already made a vet appointment for Molly for Saturday and a grooming appointment for Friday. I don’t know if I need to cancel these appointments or what.

So what was supposed to be such a happy day was nothing but disappointing, sad and frustrating. Today begins a new day and Mr. Pop and I are going to the shelter and get our little dog one way or another. Molly is going to live here, no matter what.

Molly

I am so excited that I can barely type. We went to PetSmart yesterday to get wild birdseed. As we walked in the door we saw the local humane society was there with four of their dogs. I glanced at the dogs and oh my goodness, there was my new little buddy.

She is three years old and her name is Molly. She’s a west highland white terrier or a “Westie”. She’s spayed and housebroken. She’s also crate trained. She fell in love with me and the feeling was mutual. We filled out the application and hopefully she will be here with me tonight. I will have pictures later this week. She needs a trip to the groomer to get her all clean and pretty.

She was left at the humane society because she belonged to an older woman who was having to move in with her daughter and her son in law. The son in law wouldn’t allow this lady to bring her little dog along, so Molly ended up without a home. She’s only been at the shelter a few days so she hasn’t learned any bad habits.

I’m crying and laughing as I write this. I’m just thinking about the holidays with Mr. Pop, Fred the Cat, Molly and me. This is going to be fun!

Fred the Cat on President-elect Obama and Sarah Palin

When President-elect Obama becomes President Obama you guys are probably not going to agree with every decision he makes. He may even do something that pisses some of you guys off. But something about this president is seen as very important and will be different, at least in the Pop household. The Pops trust him to do what is best for all of us in the long run. They don’t see him as a conniving, scheming politician, they see him as a smart leader with the judgment to lead our country out of the hell everyone has seen for the past eight years.

President Obama might well be the person who can unite the country when it needs it most. We already owe him a debt of gratitude for trying.

Switching subjects as rapidly as my tail switches when I’m about to pounce, here’s my take on Sarah Palin. Her character reminded me of a mouse. We cats might not want to physically harm the mouse, but we hate to let him go because he’s so much fun to play with.

Quick! Is Africa a country or a continent? If you know the right answer, congratulations, you are smarter than an Alaskan governor.

Have a great weekend! Keep your whiskers clean and your claws sharp.

Sincerely,
Fred the Cat (the cat who loves you guys!)

Please don’t wake me up

I tell you, I am still having trouble believing what happened Tuesday night. This is like having a good dream after eight years of a nightmare. For the past eight years I kept hoping we would all wake up from the nightmare and now I’m afraid I’ll wake up and this will all be just a dream.

Our lives are healing and it sure feels good!

It’s Official!!

It’s official today! Malia and Sasha can get their dog! Plus they will adopt a rescue dog instead of buying a dog from a breeder.

Oh yeah, and their daddy is our next President!!!

The long awaited day is here

I thought on a day as big as this one when all our nerves are frayed and ragged, maybe it would be best to just post this photo I took yesterday morning. A beautiful little peacock butterfly resting contentedly on my hedge. Ah, to feel that sort of peace and contentment again. Maybe our time is just around the corner or in this case, just one spin around the clock.

Sadly, Senator Obama’s grandmother passed away yesterday. I would like to think that she felt he had this thing won and didn’t need her any longer. Thank goodness he was able to visit with her when he did.

So at the beginning of this long awaited day, Fred the Cat and I would like to say, Good Luck, Senator Obama and Senator Biden!
And especially, good luck to everyone in America!

Time to Sober Up

If Senator Obama wins the election tomorrow night, I have to sober up. Not sober up from alcohol consumption but sober up from anger and frustration. I have felt anger and frustration so long that I fear I may be hooked on it. Time for a change. Time to get clean. Time for me to take a positive attitude toward my country and my fellow Americans, all of them.

Senator Obama is going to need the help of all of us if we are to chart a different course ahead for our country. He’s going to need all the positive energy our country can muster.

I have to look forward with as much hope as I have felt doom these past eight years. No miracles are coming, I’m positive of that, but at the very least we can envision something a whole lot better than what we have experienced for far too long.