Drilling Holes In The Sky

Glass Fusing 2

2012-01-25T22:20:00.001-06:00

I am writing this just after getting home from week 3 of our glass fusing course. I was looking forward to seeing the results of last week's efforts.

Here is the 6" square plate I made last week, after I cut all the glass. There is a clear layer of glass underneath, resting on three small plastic cups to make it easy to lift off.

The three shards are laid on top of the brown glass. These are pieces that are very thin, like eggshell, only in glass. They come in tubs, you don't have to cut them. Apparently to make them, they blow a giant glass bubble, cool it, and shatter it, so you end up with these very thin and slightly curved pieces. The orange line is a piece of stringer; long thin glass rods that are easily broken into lengths.

Between last week and this week, the magic happens in here. This is the kiln that our work is fired in. As you can see it is big; I laid a pair of scissors at the bottom for scale. It takes all our pieces at once. They are fused first into a flat piece, before slumping the glass into the mould.

This is what greeted me when I arrived for this week's course. One fused and slumped glass dish! You can see the individual pieces flow into each other now. The three shards have got a lot more organic looking too, with softer edges.

Here's another angle, so you can see the curve better. It is flat in the middle; just the corners are curved.

This week we made round dishes. Look for it in next week's episode!

Glass Fusing 1

2012-01-18T22:10:00.000-06:00

I am taking a course in Glass Fusing and Slumping, at Blue Moon Glassworks on Wednesday nights. We get to make several pieces of our own design in kiln-fired glass.

Here's the first week's work. We took some heat resistant fibreboard and cut shapes into it, to make a kiln carving. The idea is that you let the glass sink into and over your design. Here's the flower I drew, with the pieces cut out and ready to accept glass. My neighbour Dee is also attending the class, and you can see her fish design behind there.

Two pieces of glass go on top of the fibreboard. One is clear and the other is whichever colour you choose. Some kinds of glass - strikers - will dramatically change colour when fired, from almost clear to bright orange or red. Both pieces must be cleaned thoroughly before being placed into position. You can adjust the amount of bubbles that appear in the finished piece by putting the glass together with smooth sides or rough sides facing inwards to each other. Rough sides give more bubbles.

* * * intermission * * *
And this is where we wait for a week between classes... meanwhile the staff in the shop have fired our pieces in the kiln, and when we returned for this week's class, we were presented with this:

Once the fibreboard is removed (with the help of some water, since it disintegrates after being heated), you end up with the finished article.

And held up to the light, you can see the true colour of the glass, and the size of it using my hand for scale.
The glass picks up a lot of detail from the board. One side of the board is quite flat, and the other is more textured. The glass will show the difference in surfaces, as well as any other marks you put in. I made some lines along the petals which are visible here. I also chose the rougher surfaces for more bubbles, so you can see there are indeed some bubbles here.

This week we made square plates, but once again we have to wait for them to be fired before we see how they turn out. Look out for next week's instalment for the next set of before and after pictures!

I'll be needing a new glass of water, then.

2012-01-12T12:39:00.001-06:00

Smokey loves water. All the better if it's from somewhere other than his normal drinking fountain. Leave a glass unattended, and it will be crept up on, and hijacked. Like this:

Brick Oven Part 9

2012-01-09T07:42:00.000-06:00

Work on the brick oven continues apace... Alan now has three rows of bricks in place, and the dome shape is beginning to appear. He is also working on the door/tunnel assembly, which is taking longer than he anticipated, since he has to make his wooden former etc. But we do have plenty of progress to show for the weekend :-)

How Smokey gets on the roof

2012-01-06T07:52:00.001-06:00

I was just in time to capture The Leap this morning...! Although he usually uses the other tree, round the corner. I have also seen him fly off the roof and grab onto this tree at lightning speed before now.

Sleeping spot #34

2012-01-05T14:54:00.001-06:00

Not quite as comfy as some places, but Smokey likes to sleep here while I work on the computer.

Brick Oven Part 8

2012-01-02T17:49:00.000-06:00

Alan has spent the last few days busy with his oven. He has made a bunch of wooden pegs, with which to prop up bricks to the right angle to curve them in to make the dome shape. Here's some in situ, although this is a practise run and they're not cemented in yet.

You can see the kind of angle each brick makes to the next ones.

Alan has enough pegs for just over a row, at these base levels. Of course the number of bricks will get less as he gets to the top. He really wanted to get some cemented in, but the temperatures have fallen again and it's too cold to cure the cement.

Alan did get some bricks cut and fitted to make the front of the oven, though. These are held with clay rather than cement.

Today, he made some wooden formers for the arched tunnel, through which he will operate. There will be two more formers in front and behind of these. The chimney will be fitted in the middle of these two shown here. He will lay bricks over the top of these formers to make the arch.

Rookie

2012-01-02T17:48:00.001-06:00

I haven't taken a picture of Rookie in a while, so here she is sunning herself on one of Tamzin's chairs. Like Smokey, she has filled out in the last few months. You can see the family resemblance in the shape of her face.

Brick Oven part 7

2011-12-30T17:21:00.000-06:00

Alan has been off work, and making some progress on the brick oven. Look at all these bricks he has cut! This is about a third of the number of bricks he needs. More cutting to do.

Meanwhile, we have had some visitors wandering through. Smokey is looking askance at Light Ginger who is loitering in our front yard.

Light and Dark Ginger regroup on our courtyard wall...

Smokey is supervising Alan while he measures the bricks for the front door of the oven. He is a very helpful cat...

Alan managed to work around the various felines and has cemented on the first layer of bricks! This is the first ring that will form the actual oven dome. More to follow!

Deer

2011-12-24T09:42:00.000-06:00

We can't give you Reindeer, but we have plenty of these White Tails... Merry Christmas!

Assorted goodies; Brick Oven part 6

2011-12-19T17:22:00.000-06:00

I know it's been a loooooong time since you read the words 'Brick oven', dear readers, but it has not been forgotten!

Alan has a new brick cutting machine. This weekend, the weather was decent enough for Alan to try it out. It's been pretty wet here the last few weeks so the machine has been hiding in our garage. Here's Alan cutting some bricks:

See how nice and straight the cut edges are!
Alan only cut a few bricks but he will be on the case in earnest soon.

In other news, you will be amazed to learn that Smokey is reaching new heights of laziness, needing all three cushions to properly support his sleep.

And finally, I made my first bit of glass in a year, probably, I can't remember the last time I did any but it has been far too long.

Roof Cat says, "Let me in!"

2011-12-15T15:59:00.001-06:00

For the third time today...!

For those in cooler climates: Smokey is setting his claws into the mesh anti-mosquito screen outside the window. Just in case you were wondering what he's grabbing on to.

Smokey cuteness

2011-12-05T06:28:00.001-06:00

Gratuitous cute picture of Smokey on his chair :-) He sleeps on here while we watch TV of an evening.

We got a new quilt the other day. This has caused Smokey to eschew his usual spot between our pillows in favor of leaning against my legs on the quilt instead. I guess that's a Smokey seal of approval. Here, we have no sooner made the bed, than he is on it, ready and waiting...

Concrete Truck

2011-12-01T19:25:00.001-06:00

I've been meaning to post this and forgot - I finally got a half decent picture of one of these trucks the other day, while stopped at some lights. These tend to travel in packs of three or four at a time, led by a flag car. Look carefully and you can see the entire truck is split in two - the driveshaft is hanging loose underneath, at the rear.

I think the concrete section it is carrying gets used to make road flyovers. They have been building some around here recently and the concrete pieces all seem very similar. The ramp shown here immediately behind the truck is a classic example. There must be a factory south of here somewhere, it is not uncommon to see these trucks. It's just taken me a while to get a picture...

Besieged by cats

2011-11-29T07:30:00.001-06:00

We had both Ginger Cats visiting this morning. Here is Light Ginger by the window and his brother Dark Ginger below. They come from the house across the way and are a little over a year old. They do have real names but I forgot them.

Smokey isn't convinced by them. He spent about half an hour growling at them, but they are thick and didn't take the hint, although Light Ginger didn't stick around for long. Meanwhile, Dark Ginger and Smokey took it in turns to nibble the lettuce from our tray. Damn cats!

And of course Snowman is wanting his breakfast, while Dark Ginger wants (a) to get in the house or (b) to eat Snowman's food; whichever is available... I am thankful he doesn't appear to have worked out what the cat flap is for. Yet. But if I open the door, he's in like a shot.

So I ended up having to hold Dark Ginger while Snowman ate. Again...

gratuitous Smokey Cat photo

2011-11-23T13:12:00.001-06:00

Got Smokey to pose this morning :-)

New sleeping spot

2011-11-16T17:46:00.000-06:00

We have had the tall cat tree for a while. It used to be Bandit's favourite perch, but has lain largely unused since her passing. However, in the last few days, Smokey has decided he is going to sleep on top of there, instead of in his tower. Time for a change, I guess.

Raiiin

2011-11-15T10:14:00.001-06:00

For the first time in months, we are getting some much-needed RAIN! With the lakes at an all-time low and major league drought restrictions in place, this is so necessary.

This storm is moving from west to east, right over us:

As I type, it is up to 0.8 inches and rising, although the bulk of the storm has gone through already.

Look! Real, honest, water! And some thunder, too.

Moving house

2011-11-05T15:16:00.001-05:00

When Americans talk about moving house, they mean it!

Visitors

2011-11-04T09:40:00.003-05:00

I managed to catch a nice one of our hanger-on Snowman in the golden sunset light, between beggings and mewings for his dinner...

Meanwhile, here is one of the ginger cats from across the way. Inside our sun room. He is a little menace, this one. Very friendly - almost too friendly - winding himself around your legs; you really have to watch where you step. He will come running if he sees us. And always dart for an open door. I had to let him stay in here while Snowman ate his breakfast this morning, as it was the only way he could eat unmolested, otherwise this one will steal it.

Pumpkins

2011-10-31T14:39:00.001-05:00

Happy Halloween! Have some pumpkins.

Who knew there were so many varieties?!

Smokey Cat

2011-10-27T06:50:00.004-05:00

Smokey being his usual self in the garden.

And being a sink cat again...

Death and Remembrance

2011-10-25T11:38:00.000-05:00

With Halloween season upon us, the neighbourhood is sprouting gravestones, white-sheet ghosts hanging from trees and no doubt the local children will be trick-or-treating in due course. I would like to take the festival back to its roots, as a rememberance for the Souls who have left us during the year.

It seems that we have lost a large number of friends in these last few months. Perhaps it is inevitable; as we get older, so do our friends, and as our circle of acquaintances increases in size, so do the chances of losing some along the way. None of that logic makes it any easier.

We remember our friends:

Diane's partner Toby Archer
Alzonia, a neighbour with whom I used to go walking
Dave Hall, purveyor of fine coffee and banter in his shop, Texspresso
Alan's colleague Kate Kneebone

John Agnew of Rougham Airfield
Greg Poe, aerobatic pilot
Frans Dely, aviation photographer
Our beautiful little cat Bandit

and while I never met Steve Jobs or Dennis Ritchie, their influence in our household is profound.

They are missed.

Smokey and the fridge

2011-10-11T18:59:00.004-05:00

Smokey has discovered a taste for kale, which borders on obsessional. We can no longer open the fridge door and expect it to remain unexamined!

Mewing will ensue if he doesn't get any... Lots of mewing...

And yes, I did check; kale is fine for cats. Seems there are a few other kale kitties around on the interwebs, too.

Praying Mantis

2011-10-05T17:44:00.000-05:00

Today's visitor.

A look back

2011-09-23T10:27:00.001-05:00

It's almost a month now since Bandit was taken from us. I'm still not really used to the fact she's gone.

However, it has helped in some ways for me to go through this blog, and my other pictures that didn't make it online. I have put them all together in a book. I don't want to leave them all only online. Barring disaster, books are safer, they don't crash or get wiped or corrupted. So while this is primarily for Alan's and my benefit, I may as well put the book online here, for anyone that wants to look at it. I certainly don't expect anyone to want to buy a book of someone else's cats, but there's a few of you out there who met Bandit; I hope you enjoy flicking through the pictures here.

Smokey and Bandit by Jo Hunter | Make Your Own Book

Bandit

2011-08-29T11:09:00.000-05:00

This is the last photo I took of Bandit, relaxing on the ottoman the other day.

I played with her on Saturday morning; she was helping me move some stuff around by chasing it and pouncing on things. Then she went outside.

Some time after then, she was taken by a wild animal. I found her remains this morning. There wasn't much left.

Rest in peace, Bandit. You were loved immensely. You were such a happy cat, and it's a crying shame your life was cut short. Alan, Smokey and I will all miss you.

Austin by Night

2011-08-10T09:45:00.000-05:00

I love to take night shots, and views from high places. So when I recently had the opportunity to visit the 19th floor of the Hilton hotel in Austin, it made me happy! This is what I saw out of the window:

Bandit and the Hammock

2011-07-23T08:30:00.003-05:00

Bandit is field testing Alan's new comfy hammock. She is only on here because she was lying on the mesh on the ground, before I lifted it up. She will try and jump on, but she can't get far enough inboard; she lands on the edge and it tips her off ;-) I think this is really one big cat toy.

Lazy Smokey

2011-07-16T08:29:00.001-05:00

Relaxing in the sun room. He loves to kick one foot up onto the wall; does the same thing when he sleeps in the brick oven.

Early morning Visitor

2011-07-02T07:00:00.002-05:00

Sorry about the low quality picture; it was this or nothing! I guess the poor things are thirsty... It is DRY around here.

Protected

2011-06-28T16:24:00.003-05:00

Sigisgild, the Concealing Stool of Protection, grants peaceful sleep to those who seek shelter within.

Bandit, Jeeps and Snakes

2011-05-25T07:12:00.002-05:00

Here is Bandit, investigating and enjoying the mesh roof on my Jeep.

She got inside and watched birds fly around for a while, chittering at me.

Action mirror shot :-)

A little while later, I was getting ready to leave. When I emerged from the house, this is the sight that greeted me on the driveway! Smokey was just out of shot. They were both dancing around the snake, prodding it with paws and nose. The snake was not enjoying this, and was making a few strikes back of its own. Luckily the cats are quick; I don't think the snake connected. Certainly the cats acted fairly normally.

I think it's an Eastern Yellow Belly Racer snake. Non-venomous. *whew*!

Here is a close up of the snake. You can see it has been injured... it was like that when I got there. Didn't seem to be too slow though, I hope the injury was not deep.

I managed to get a hold of it with a long pole (after a few attempts, the pole end got bitten a lot) and lift it back into the long grass. Then distracted the cats to a safe distance...

Lazing

2011-05-18T18:08:00.002-05:00

Fleeting yucca flowers

2011-05-05T20:37:00.002-05:00

These flowers exist for only a few days. Yucca plants with long thin leaves produce them. They grow on tall stalks over a meter tall (3 or 4 feet) at least. They don't last long. The stalk dies and remains in place until the next year, when the plant tries again.

Rorshach Cat #2

2011-05-05T17:23:00.002-05:00

Bandit was at it again!

Alan's Brick Oven, Part 5

2011-05-01T18:43:00.000-05:00

Here is the first layer of heat resistant bricks, laid down on some silicate pads. This forms the cooking floor. Obviously it needs some tidying and edge trimming etc, we will cut some of the front bricks and fill the holes to make a straight edge, but it's a start.

Alan's Brick Oven, Part 4

2011-04-26T16:30:00.004-05:00

Just when you thought we'd forgotten about building this thing...

Alan has taken the week off work, so on Monday we went to the brick shop to order some bricks. Today a very large truck brought one little pallet of 200 firebricks, and some heat block cement.

Watch this space...

Visitors

2011-04-25T08:03:00.003-05:00

These two wandered in for a visit. Very friendly cats! Lots of mewing, winding around our legs and wanting into the house. Their collars list a neighbouring house as their home so we'll not be feeding these ones ;-)

Horse riding

2011-04-07T15:41:00.002-05:00

Diane wanted to go horse riding, so I asked Terri for advice (she keeps horses) and Terri gave me the name of White Fences Equestrian Centre up in Manor as a good place to go. We were not disappointed!

We arrived at a really impressive facility. Here is the indoor school/dressage arena, complete with mirror on the back wall:

Here is a stable block, all bright and clean:

There was a show jumping arena, a lunging ring and many fields filled with horses. It's a big place. And they have many white fences. Lots of rosettes, too.

Here's Diane with her new friends. I do hope her cats accept the new arrivals once she gets home. ;-)

We were here to do some trail riding. They assured us that the horses were docile and suited to beginners.

This is Diane's horse, named Frosty. He is wearing a Western saddle. We were excited to try riding Western style. Neither of us had been on a horse since we were kids, and of course we did English riding, which is quite different.

I got it all wrong at first, naturally, until I got the hang of the neck rein instead of English reining. My horse, Charlie Brown, was a veritable eating machine. Every tree we passed got nipped at, especially if it was a Mesquite. Apparently those are tasty.

The lady in front here is instructor Angel, who was guiding us around. The other lady was just out for a ride; I think she got bored with our slow pace and disappeared off in front after a while. Diane and I were really enjoying the Texas trail, it was very pretty. And they grey skies were a blessing, it was not even slightly cold, it was perfect.

Angel took the camera, so the next few shots are by her. Here's Diane and I being all Western! All we need are Stetson hats ;-)

And finally, Diane with her horse.

We had a great time riding here and would definitely go back. Once our legs have ceased to ache ;-)

Diane's Visit

2011-04-07T06:37:00.003-05:00

Here's a few pictures from Diane's visit this week. I am going to split this over my two different blogs, just to be annoying ;-) Look for the Air Race and our forthcoming Road Trip over on the action and adventure side of things at http://futurshox.blogspot.com/. Meanwhile, the more gentle pursuits of animals and culture will be sprinkled here.

First up was a visit to the LBJ Museum. Here's Diane in front of the sign. Everyone takes this picture!

Inside, we have exhibitions of American history during the time of LBJ's Presidency, and exhibits about his family and life. This is a very poor representation of Michael O'Brien's portrait of LBJ's family, but I absolutely adore this photograph. Everything about it is fabulous. Everyone in the picture looks really happy, down to the youngest baby. It's hard to explain, but it makes me choke up every time I see it. They don't have any copies for sale, or I'd buy one.

On Tuesday we visited the town of Wimberley, where we had a lovely time wandering around all the arty crafty shops there. Don't go on a Tuesday though, a lot of them are shut! However, enough were open to keep us entertained. Lots of them had cats wandering in and out, demanding attention. All the shopkeepers greeted us with comments about how nice the weather was, and they weren't wrong; it was gorgeous. We had lunch at Ino'z Brew and Chew whose food was OK, but sitting outside on the decking by the river was beautiful.

Below is a wireframe aeroplane that sits outside a cluster of (closed on Tuesdays) shops.

Yesterday we went to the Alamo Drafthouse cinema, always a good move. They take out every second row of chairs in the theatre and replace them with bench tables, and serve food and beer through the movie. It is very civilized. We saw 'Paul' which was great; very funny.

Then on the way home, we dropped into the South Austin Museum of Popular Culture, as Diane wanted to see what it was. I had no idea what was in there - it is one of those places I've driven past a thousand times and though 'One day I must visit'. So this was the day, and inside we found it to be a display of a collective of Austin artists who specialise in rock concert posters. The artwork was really excellent, and our enthusiastic artist guide, Henry Gonzales, was kind enough to give us a couple of posters each to take home.

This is Diane posing in front of the mural and art cars at the back of the museum:

So, onwards... Watch this space!

New grill

2011-04-04T06:06:00.001-05:00

Behold Alan's shiny new grill! He is very pleased with it. First meal was some chicken, then he spent about 14 hours smoking some pork in there; it was delicious.

The Siege

2011-03-21T18:26:00.001-05:00

Our visitor...

Who has now taken up station inside our sun room, presumably hoping for an evening meal as well as breakfast!

Spring is sprung

2011-03-20T18:13:00.001-05:00

The bluebonnets are riz.
I wonder where the birdies iz?
The hummingbirds are tapping at the window, waiting for their feeder juice!

I succumbed

2011-03-19T08:21:00.001-05:00

I know I only posted about Snowman yesterday, but he has been hanging around for months now.

So this morning, all three cats were hanging out together, when Smokey and Bandit wanted their breakfast.

And I could no longer ignore Snowman, so I gave him a bowl too... He's in the foreground; tail extended.

I should probably note that we asked the neighbourhood some time ago if Snowman belonged to anyone and nobody cane forward, so I am pretty sure he is a stray and I am not feeding someone else's cat!

As I type, he has completely finished the bowl. While he's not a thin cat, he must be a hungry one.

Snowman

2011-03-18T11:01:00.003-05:00

This is Snowman.

He is a wandering stray that lives in the neighbourhood. He is a wily and bold cat. He is friends with Bandit, and we have often seen them walking together, or just sitting in the back yard.

He also likes to eat, and is not shy about taking opportunities. Since Bandit showed him where her food was, he will slink into our kitchen and help himself, if the back door is open! On several occasions now, I have spied a black backside high-tailing it out of the house when I've come downstairs.

His ear is clipped as a marker; he must have been trapped and neutered at some point in his life.

And if you're wondering why we call him Snowman... well, the Bandit's best friend in the movie was Snowman the truck driver... and it seemed nicely ironic :-)

Besieged by waily cats

2011-03-04T10:50:00.001-06:00

This morning, these two were due at the vet for their first annual checkup.

Cue much wailing and mewing since I wouldn't let them outside.

More wailing and yowling in the car. It really is amazing, the variety of noises these cats can produce.

At the vet, Bandit was not convinced but she allowed herself to be weighed and examined, before receiving the three vaccinations they both required.

Smokey, however, turned into a growling, hissing, ball of grey clawy fury whenever a vet or technician tried to get near him... We skipped the weighing and exam. It took three of them, a towel and a leash round his neck to hold him still for three of the fastest injections you ever saw.

The vets and techs all scarpered, while I calmed Smokey down and got him back in his box.

More mewing on the way home, although mainly resigned-sounding.

And now we are all in the house. But since the vet said I should keep them in today, more wailing is going on. They want Out! So I am besieged, while they make sure I know they are there.

Miaooooouw!

Random kindness

2011-02-14T14:26:00.003-06:00

I went down to the pet shop to buy cat food, before I am lynched by two hungry felines.

As I got out of my car in the parking lot, a scruffy green car came to a rapid stop, and a young guy leapt out, brandishing a bunch of flowers. He said, "These are for you. I would like you to have them. Have a nice day!" and as I was thanking him for being so kind, he got back into his car and drove off.

How totally random, and how nice!

Made my day :-)

Gratuitous cat photos

2011-02-11T06:59:00.005-06:00

Here is Smokey, investigating one of the new plants we had put in this week (more of which later):

Meanwhile, Bandit wanted to help with the laundry. The conversation went something like this:

SCENE: The bedroom.

Bandit: I want to sit in the washing basket!
Jo: If you do, I will pull T-shirts out from underneath you. I need to fold them.
Bandit: OK then, I want to sit on this pile of T-shirts! It looks more comfortable anyway!
Jo: If you sit there, I will stack T-shirts on top of you.

And lo, it came to pass that Bandit was warm and cozy:

Evidence! Roof Cat has been on the prowl...

2011-02-04T16:37:00.001-06:00

The last bit of snow in the whole place, and Bandit just has to walk through it. Cue waily mewing from the balcony...
;-)

Snow Cats

2011-02-04T08:45:00.003-06:00

This morning, we had a sprinkling of snow! Probably not quite even one inch, but enough to get everything white. This is a Big Deal in this part of Texas. We have had temperatures of 18F/-8C this week, as cold as we have ever known it here. Until this morning, it remained very dry, but last night some moisture rolled in, so we got snow.

The cats have never seen snow before, so we were looking forward to seeing what they'd make of it.

As you can see, they had a great time, before getting a bit chilly and wanting back in.

Finally, here is a short video of the moment at which they were let outside... this is the very first time they encounter the white stuff! Normally, when we let them out in the morning, they will go out, sniff the air, scratch the balcony support poles and be on their way. Snow obviously turns them into kittens again :-)

Bandit vs. The Deer

2011-01-23T06:42:00.002-06:00

Here we can see Bandit pretending to hide behind the bird bath, eyeing up the deer. She has been spotted chasing them across the garden on previous occasions, but most of the time observation and mild stalking seems to be the order of the day.

Running water is more tasty

2011-01-21T08:58:00.001-06:00

They have been drinking from the bathroom sink tap for a couple of months now. They love it. We finally relented and got them a drinking fountain of their own, which they also love, but tap water remains fair game...

Cat Infestation

2011-01-20T12:14:00.000-06:00

And yes, I know my Jeep needs a wash. Shame I couldn't get them to lick it clean while they were there.

Roof Cat on the wrong side of the window

2011-01-19T09:34:00.000-06:00

We have each other well trained, however. I went up to the balcony to let her in, and she appeared as I opened the door.

Many Deer

2011-01-13T14:59:00.003-06:00

There's at least three distinct deer families that live around the subdivision here. They are usually to be spotted wandering around at any time of day or night. Each family usually contains around six to eight individuals. They often sleep on our front lawn; we have to watch out for them if we drive home late at night.

Today I drove home and found an entire squadron of them hanging around the driveway. I guess this is two familes together. They moved off as I approached and departed across the neighbour's front garden. I had just enough time to grab my phone and record the video below. Pretty cool to see so many together.

Smokey being cute

2011-01-12T16:45:00.001-06:00

Right before he flew into Insane Attack Mode and caught a sparrow in our sun room. I got it off him, put it in the hanging basket and it was gone a couple of hours later. Injured or not, I cannot say.

However, I do love the way Smokey sits like this, with his long legs all stretched out :-)

Bandit discovers she can sit on, and lick, ice

2011-01-12T08:15:00.000-06:00

But then it gets all melty and slippery and it's not the best way to get a drink, and then Smokey attacks...

Ew, it's cold!

2011-01-10T10:14:00.002-06:00

We don't want to go outside, we want to stay in the warm!

Yup, it's 38F/4C outside right now; misty and damp. They have been outside, thought better of it and gone back to bed.

Mouse 1, Cats 0

2010-12-11T08:45:00.001-06:00

This little guy is actually quite big for a mouse. He survived being carried about by Smokey, and being pinned into a corner by Bandit. Found refuge where the cats couldn't reach, before I lured them in for breakfast, and chased the mouse outside. It ran off at speed, apparently uninjured.

Alan's brick oven, part 3

2010-12-08T17:55:00.002-06:00

These pictures are actually about a month old, but here you go. This is us pouring the top slab of concrete onto the bottom half of the oven.

Alan lowered the height of the edge since you last saw this, so the slab will be a little thinner than we thought at first.

Half way done

Most of the way in

All done! And made nice and smooth, too.

A week later it was strong enough to stand on.

We have a large pile of boxes in our living room right now, which have arrived this week, containing all the metalwork items for the chimney and heat resistant blankets and materials for the dome. We have our eyes on a brick supplier and need to check them out. Next task; building the dome!

Water cats again

2010-12-08T17:41:00.001-06:00

They love the bird bath. They especially love it when I am pouring water in there.

Crimbo lights are up.

2010-12-04T18:41:00.001-06:00

This flying Santa was my birthday present from Tamzin. Rope light runway was my idea...

Happy Birthday!

2010-11-27T20:06:00.001-06:00

Smokey and Bandit are one year old today. We got them at six weeks old, in January.

They seem to be dropping a hint that they want us to put the heating on. It's been a long time since they both curled up in here...

Sink Cat

2010-11-18T09:33:00.001-06:00

Smokey has taken to water in a big way, and takes every opportunity to investigate taps and faucets.

The road loves you

2010-09-30T08:20:00.001-05:00

This heart is embedded in the Tarmac in our subdivision.

Roof Cat #2

2010-09-28T08:25:00.001-05:00

I can report that the balcony retrieval method works excellently. In fact, Bandit got there before I did!

Garden Cats

2010-09-28T07:26:00.001-05:00

Gratuitous pictures of S&B in the garden...

The grill

The brick oven

Of course the brick oven has a wonderful big drinking bowl on top at the moment. Nice clean tap water is so boring in comparison, don't you think?

Desperate Cats

2010-09-28T07:03:00.002-05:00

Here is a typical morning in our house, bearing in mind I won't let the cats out when it is still dark. Current sunrise is about 07:10.

05:29 - Smokey wants to go outside.
05:30 - Alan and I feed the cats and sit down to breakfast.
05:45 - Alan departs for work. I hold Smokey otherwise he will escape into the garage.
05:46 - Smokey really wants to go outside. Meowing commences.
05:58 - Meowing is louder.
05:59 - Meowing is very insistent.
06:05 - MAOW MEOW MOW MAOW MOW MOW MEOW MOW MOW!
06:10 - Bandit decides she won't be a part of this and goes back to sleep. If she can, with all this racket going on.
06:15 - Intermittent, yet persistent meowing is spelled by prowling back and forth around the dining room, scratching the carpet to get my attention.
06:30 - Other ways of getting my attention are explored, such as attaching claws into my feet. Meowing continues. I explain to Smokey that I can't make the sun rise any quicker, but he doesn't seem to care.
06:45 - Meowing subdues slightly while Smokey and Bandit engage in some fighting.
06:50 - Bandit takes over mewing for a while to give Smokey a rest.
06:53 - Smokey is back on the case.
07:00 - A path is being worn between my chair and the door.
07:09 - Bandit walks over and mews politely to tell me the sun has risen.
07:10 - I let them out. PEACE reigns again.

*cats*....

Roof Cat

2010-09-28T06:34:00.002-05:00

There I am, sitting at my computer, idly gazing out of the window, when I spy Bandit ambling along the roof. Wha..?

Outside I go, and there she is, looking all smug, saying 'Look where I am!'.

A bit of mewing, but all is basically well. However I figured I should probably entice her down. My first ploy was to go to the guest room window, which opens out onto the first floor roof. I should point out our house is in two levels, but the ground floor is wider than the second floor, so the first floor roof encircles the house. Upon reaching the guest room, I can't move the insect screens. Although Bandit comes up to say hello and sniff my hand through the mesh, I can't let her in that way.

Plan B - go round the back to the balcony and see if she will come round and jump up to it. This might have worked, but as soon as I reached the balcony, the heavens opened with a torrential sudden heavy rainstorm. This is Bad, because the water cascades down the roof like nothing else.

I dashed downstairs again, to find Bandit in the only place she could go - under the slight overhang between the two roof parts shown in these pictures. She was tucked up underneath the joist, as far as she could get in there, to stay dry. Lots of mewing ensued!

So, to the garage, to find some stepladders. I assembled our big ladders into as tall a stepladder as I could build, and put it as close to Bandit as I could get it. Climbed up, but Bandit was too far above me to be able to pluck her off, so I presented her my shoulders, and gave her lots of encouragement. This was punctuated on Bandit's part with more mewing. She got the hint though, and after some deliberation jumped down onto my back. She clung on while I descended the ladder, at least for a few steps; she jumped off as quick as she could. I guess a human back isn't as steady a platform as a cat would like.

Meanwhile, enter Smokey. A very wet, drenched Smokey! I have no idea where he'd come from, but he'd obviously been as surprised by the rain as we were. Here they are, sorting themselves out:

I dare say this won't be the last cat adventure...

Vultures

2010-09-27T09:19:00.000-05:00

Here's a picture I have been wanting to take for ages. Check out all these guys! Not sure what they are eating - dead deer and rabbits are the usual fare. Vultures are great, they perform a very useful service!

Alan's Brick Oven, Part 2

2010-09-20T07:37:00.002-05:00

Here is some more progress on the brick oven!

Since you last saw it, Alan has put cap stones onto the wall of breeze blocks. We filled the corners with concrete before glueing the stones into place. We used a concrete bonding glue which is very strong.

Yesterday we went to the store and bought copious amounts of wood, which Alan used to make the frame for the top slab.

Here's the inside frame, before Alan put the second half of the board in:

And then he built the outside of the frame. So this entire thing will be filled with more concrete.

We then have to buy some heat resistant slab bricks to lay on top of the plain concrete, which will become the cooking surface.

More to follow, in time...

Alan's Brick Oven, Part 1

2010-09-04T18:56:00.003-05:00

Some of you will have heard Alan and I talking about the brick oven Alan is building in our back garden. This is going to be an Italian-style bread and pizza oven.

Here's a few pictures of the construction process...

The hole we dug for the concrete slab. It is 8" deep in the middle. We actually raised the mesh height slightly after this pic was taken.

Here's the truck we rented from Home Depot.

We needed its 3000lb load capacity, and it still took us two trips to bring home sixty 80lb bags of concrete.

We didn't have time to take pictures during the concrete pouring process. We got into a system of working. Alan would heft a bag of concrete into the mixer, I'd pass him a measured bucket of water, he poured that in. Mix for two minutes while I get another bag. Pour out the concrete into the hole; I get busy with the spade and spread out the concrete while Alan hefts another bag... This was bloody hard work and we demolished some beer afterwards, I can tell you.

Here's the slab five days later, after it had dried out.

Fast forward a couple of weeks, and we got some bricks. Here's the first layer.

Of course, no building work can be done without feline supervision ;-)

Three rows...

Fourth and last row, with angle iron to make the support for the opening. Note the difference in shadow angle; we can put only one row of bricks in our car at a time, so between the third and fourth row was lunch and the journey to the shop and back.

The bricks will get concrete poured down their holes tomorrow for strength, and then we start framing up for the slab to be poured on top.

Watch this space...

Comfy

2010-08-26T16:43:00.001-05:00

Look at those colourful eyes...

But that's my bed!

2010-08-26T16:42:00.000-05:00

Smokey stole Bandit's usual sleeping spot, so she just sat on top of him. Hey, we can both squeeze on here...

Rorschach Cat

2010-08-24T16:46:00.000-05:00

Bandit vs. The Frog

2010-08-16T10:29:00.000-05:00

So Bandit wanders in to the house with this little guy in her teeth. And then starts foaming at the mouth, big style.

One quick phone call to the vet later, we are in the car, away to get her checked out... They examined her at the surgery. She is fine. If it happens again, they say to simply rinse out the cat's mouth with water.

Bandit is back home, stalking the next victim even as I type...

Today's rescue: a female Painted Bunting

2010-08-15T08:29:00.000-05:00

Yin and Yang

2010-07-23T11:15:00.001-05:00

California Creatures

2010-07-14T21:19:00.004-05:00

It was my good fortune this week to have a trip out to California, visiting Beale Air Force Base, where I was to photograph a buddy of mine doing wonderful things in a T-38 aeroplane. Meanwhile, we were stationed in the Visiting Officers' Quarters (VOQ) on base.

The air base is huge, and being in California in the summer, it is covered in very dry, crispy looking grass; all golden in colour. Now you know why they have so many wildfires over there.

Behind the VOQ was a road, which led to a trail going down into the valley. Early morning walks down here were very pleasant. The grass consistently rustled with the sound of ten million lizards. At the bottom was a small dammed lake, with a salmon ladder allowing the fish to swim up from the river below.

The first morning was a voyage of discovery. I didn't really expect this kind of pleasant space on an air force base. The second morning, I took my long lens with me, to capture some of the wildlife. Click each picture to enlarge it.

Lizards

I think this is a wild turkey. She has five chicks, some of whom are visible here. Each chick is the size of a small chicken; these are big birds!

Finally, a deer.

Rescued Mockingbird

2010-07-02T10:21:00.001-05:00

Bandit was looking really smug this morning after catching this mockingbird. I grabbed it off her and put it in the hanging basket where she can't reach. Although she had a damn good try! It is looking dazed but is moving around.

Hello Mr Stick Insect

2010-06-20T13:59:00.001-05:00

I hope the cats don't find you.

My efforts to clean out my car this morning are being thwarted

2010-06-13T09:34:00.001-05:00

The car is being thoroughly investigated.

Smokey picking off even more seeds

2010-06-11T09:00:00.002-05:00

Guess I will have to vacuum again...

Bandit caked in seeds

2010-06-11T09:00:00.001-05:00

The cats are helping us dig our brick oven foundation

2010-05-31T09:40:00.001-05:00

New config for Kitty City

2010-05-26T09:18:00.000-05:00

They are, of course, ignoring it. Outside is more fun.

Emerging

2010-05-25T18:30:00.001-05:00

They did come out of the tunnel. Eventually.

The water tunnel

2010-05-25T18:29:00.000-05:00

Their first time venturing along the storm water tunnel that runs
underneath our driveway. God knows what is in there. Frogs, probably.

Bandit's bed

2010-05-18T19:26:00.001-05:00

She won't budge, so Smokey just drapes himself across her...

Rainbow Cat

2010-05-05T07:47:00.001-05:00

Bandit catches the light streaming through the beveled glasswork in
our front door.

This morning, I am covered in cats.

2010-05-05T07:22:00.001-05:00

The birdbath

2010-05-02T21:50:00.000-05:00

Smokey reckons the bird water is ripe for investigation.

Treed cat

2010-05-02T21:49:00.000-05:00

Alan is enticing a very waily Bandit down from the tree she has got
herself stuck in. Lots of really quite pathetic mewing was going on
here, but she did cone down eventually.

Why nothing gets done easily around here any more

2010-04-27T16:43:00.005-05:00

Cats. Specifially, cats and doors.

Example: I wish to go for a walk. This requires me to get changed and leave the house. Easy, right?

Well, I first need to go into the bedroom to change. This means I have to outrun the cats to the bedroom door, or distract them by throwing a toy in the opposite direction.

Assuming I succeed, the door is quickly closed and I can get changed into walking/cycling/whatever gear. Now I have to get out of the bedroom again. You may remember this picture:

This still firmly applies, except they're bigger now. So I open the door, they race in, I grab one, put him or her in the adjacent restroom, close that door, retrieve the other one from wherever they've gone in the bedroom (if it's Bandit, she's likely to be half way up the bamboo blind by now), leave the bedroom, close the door. Let the trapped cat out of the restroom. First stage done.

Now I have to put my shoes on, which are in the laundry room. Let me again refer you to a previous picture:

They're less fluffy now, but still just as interested in laces. Dancing around inquisitive cats, I eventually get the shoes on. Now I have to get out of the front door, without letting the cats out. Again, a diversion is necessary, but they are not silly, and if you're not extremely quick in opening, getting through and closing the door, those little missiles will be out. Smokey's nose must have bumped off the door jamb this morning, he was so fast!

Luckily, by the time I've been out for 30-40 minutes, they tend to be asleep, so one can slink into the house quietly without being molested by moggies.

However, when coming in from a car journey, things are not so simple... they know the sound of the garage door, and cars arriving in the garage, and the key in the lock. Guess what happens next?

Cats escaping into the garage (via 12seconds.tv)

Cue the next five minutes being spent retrieving cats from the dark corners of the garage, providing you can find them! No wonder everything takes ten more minutes than you anticipate...

Bandit and her collar

2010-04-24T14:47:00.001-05:00

She hates it, but is resigned to it... We are both looking forward to
the day she can remove it.

Cat in a sink

2010-04-24T14:45:00.001-05:00

Smokey found himself a cat-sized space to sleep in :-)

Convalescing Cats

2010-04-23T09:52:00.000-05:00

S&B went to the vet yesterday to be spayed and neutered. They went
through their surgery very well and are now back home. They have to be
kept quiet for a while in an enclosed environment. Bandit is hating
her collar but it's the only way to stop her licking her incision.
They're both still little purring machines though :-)

Their first tree!

2010-04-19T17:23:00.001-05:00

We have started to let them outside, and they are loving it. Great way
to tire them out, too ;-)

Had to happen

2010-04-19T11:56:00.001-05:00

They have discovered how to reach the highest shelf in the room...