Inane Chatter

Guys, did you see this?  I heard about it a few days ago, but didn’t watch the video until today.

How cool is that?

I was listening to the radio in the car the other day, and I heard a commercial for the National Association of Realtors.  Except they didn’t say it that way.  Not the way I say realtor.  Not the way anyone I know says realtor.  You know, like realter.  Kind of.  Anyway, no.  The guy on the radio announcing the official name of the organization over and over again pronounced it real-tor.  Over and over again.  Tor.  Like the rock formation.  Or the publishing company.  I assume that’s how it’s pronounced.  Tor.  Like or.  Four.  Bore.  Core.  If tor is pronounced “ter”, then I’m just going to keep saying it the wrong way ’cause that’s ridiculous.  But when it’s at the end of a word?  And that word is realtor?  Please.  Real-tor.  As if there are fake tors out there somewhere.

Reminds me of these guys.

Is anyone else disappointed every time you’re confronted with a picture of Bob Woodward?  He should look like Robert Redford.  Gets me every time.

So does this guy.

I counted two (TWO!) Doctor Who jokes.

Did you know goats are evil?  It’s their eyes.  Their eyes give them away.

All of that adorable playing and attention-hogging is just a ruse. What adorable playing?  This adorable playing!  (Please bear with me through this 2-minute video.  They really do do some cute things.)

Clearly, I met some goats last weekend.  And fed them and played with them and picked a favorite.  (Baxter, the brown one, is my favorite.  Dad’s favorite is Bruiser (black with blue eyes).  Trixie wasn’t all that interested in us.)

Baxter: “Whatcha doin’?” Or possibly, “My plan to take over the world begins with you. Look into my eyes so I can take over your brain.”

I hate spiders, I really do.  They creep me out.  BUT.  This video is hilarious and not very long.  You should totally watch it and not have nightmares (like Dooce did).

I can’t multi-task anymore.  I probably never could, but it didn’t used to be so obvious.  If my brain isn’t ready for, oh, let’s say…work, then work isn’t going to happen.  But when I’ve flipped the work switch to ON (and all connections have been made – no shorts here), then work is all I can do.  It’s all I can do, it’s all I can think about, and it’s all I can talk about.  It’s really annoying.  It’s fine during the workday, of course, but REALLY not okay once I’m home.  I don’t have that kind of job.  And look what I’m doing right now!  Stop it.

Hey, brisket sandwiches!  Are a wonderful thing.  I had one for lunch.  And we’re having leftover non-Mexican chicken corn chowder for dinner.  Because it turned out pretty yummy.

No segue.  Just videos. (Both are from The Daily What via wherever those guys found them. Video 1. Video 2.)

My favorite people are the ones who danced with the guy. I think I’d be one of them.

This is fantastic. Question: could it really be the cat’s first experience with snow? How did the cameraperson know to be ready?

It’s time for a Roxy update.

1. She’s doing SO much better.  She wags her tail sometimes, she gets up without assistance, she meets us at the door and asks to go outside, and she even trots off the deck with some of her old excitement.  Sometimes.  We think the liver medication she’s on might actually be helping.  She’s also not favoring her paws like she was.
2. Speaking of her paws, we took her to the doggie dermatologist yesterday morning, and he confirmed that her paw problems are most likely caused by her liver issues.  His solution is another antibiotic, another topical cream, and a change in her diet.  He says she needs a special kind of protein, so starting tomorrow (when I can get to the store), Roxy will get cottage cheese and calf liver with her regular dog food for dinner.  She’s going to love it.  The best part is that he thinks this should actually improve her paws, not just keep them from getting worse.

Right now, she’s wearing socks and resting quietly on her bed.  (We’re supposed to keep socks on her paws for ten minutes after putting the new topical cream on them.)  It’s cute.

Speaking of cute (or terrifying – you decide):

John thinks it’s fake. I think it’s hilarious either way. Here’s another one:

And here’s a really neat optical illusion.

All videos courtesy of The Daily What (here and here).

Today has been the longest day.  At least three different times during the workday (and again just now), I was convinced it was Tuesday night (or possibly Wednesday).  That much has happened since I woke up this morning (which, admittedly, was earlier than usual because it’s one of John’s boxing days – more on that later).  Actually, not that much happened today that’s of interest to anyone I don’t work with, but it was a super busy day.  And I got my year-end bonus.    Yay me!

Man!  I completely skipped my online morning routine, too.  Pause while I check Woot and XKCD.  Better, and only 10 hours later than usual for a Monday.

I’m trying to reconnect with whatever feelings of calm I found yesterday while I was getting my nails done.  I went to my favorite place, and they were completely empty.  I was the only customer and no one seemed to be in the mood to talk (which was fine with me).  It was so peaceful, utterly quiet except the god-awful muzak they were playing (which I tuned out as much as possible), and now I have awesomely hot pink toes.  However, I also have a rock band playing in my basement (for the first time in months), so peace and quiet are nowhere to be found.  Instead, I will play online and watch adorable videos, like this one.

This is almost as good as the cat on the roomba.

The last two or three days have been lovely and almost warm.  Now it’s windy and freakin’ cold.  I guess it’s time, but I don’t have to like it.  I’m catching up (a little) on the internet today, and I just had to share this.  The Bloggess posted it the other day, and it’s just about the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen.

Hey, guys, I have to dive into my book, so I’ll be in hiding tonight (except for yoga class).  Possibly tomorrow, too.  Book Club is this Friday, and according to my Kindle, I’m only 12% into Wild.  Not cool.

Have a video (from The Daily What):

Can you imagine?  I’d like to think I’d turn into Spiderman and be halfway up the elevator walls if I thought the floor was dropping out from under me.  I’d at least be hanging on to that rail for dear life.

I found my boots!  And I’m never shopping again.  Seriously, I am all shopped out.  So back to yesterday’s trip to the Waterford Fair:

Pop quiz, Jess: What kind of chickens are these?

All I know is they were cute and fluffy and not at all phased by the crowds of people streaming by.  This sheep wasn’t particularly bothered by people or dogs, now that I think about it.  I guess the people of Waterford socialize their livestock.

Frosty the Puppy was terrified of the big bad sheep.  They eventually went nose to nose, but then the puppy ran away.

It was cute.  Because puppies.  Also cute?  Ducks getting into water for the first time ever.

I have nothing to say tonight.  Is that okay?  When this happens, I should probably stay off the blog, but I don’t have that kind of control.

Instead of babbling, I’ll leave you with a couple of videos.  The first is about little green army men with British accents.  I can’t embed it (well, I probably could but it would take too much effort right now), so you’ll just have to trust me and click on the link. It’s funny.

The second video is the first episode of Written By a Kid, a web series created by the Geek and Sundry people.  These guys find a little kid and ask him/her to tell them a story.  Then they animate it and show it over the voice of the kid telling the story.  Super cute.

Now I can’t decide if I want to watch more Geek and Sundry videos or read my book. What is wrong with me?

Oh, how I want this dress.

(More pictures.)

And I want to be a princess.  And I want a pony.  And world peace.  I can’t have any of that, but I can have funny cat videos. It’s one of my inalienable rights as an internet user.

Also, if you have 4 minutes to spare, watch this. Jimmy Steward wrote a poem, and I cried.

Courtesy of The Daily What:

Check out my new favorite mug!  (How funny is that – WordPress spellcheck is British!  It wants me to put the u in favourite.)

I drank my tea from it this morning.

There’s lots to tell and not enough hours in the day, so I’ll digress even more from the trip and show you adorable-ness personified elephantified.  It’s only 22 seconds – watch the whole thing.

Did you hear about Cal Ripken Jr’s mom getting kidnapped (and returned)?  Crazy, right?  I wouldn’t bring it up except that I heard the best use of the wrong word in a news report about it.  I don’t know who was talking, but whoever it was said, “She was approached by a man garnishing a gun.”  I was immediately distracted by the image of a guy poking sprigs of parsley down the barrel and in the trigger of a handgun.  Odd, but not all that scary.  Or maybe it’s all the scarier for being so odd.

Posts here will probably be scarce (or at least very short) for the next few days, so to keep some pretty on the screen, here are some randomly selected pictures of Sparky’s other Scottish crush.

Apparently, he can’t keep his hands off himself.  Can’t say I blame him.

Update

Had to add this one last thing from The Daily What.  SO creepy and wrong.

I’m totally worn out from today.  I spent the work day getting more and more frustrated, and then I went to the gym for two hours (class night) and didn’t think about work for even a second (which was wonderful).  But the gym drained all of that frustrated energy out of me (and more), so now I’m all limp and noodly.  Relaxed, but in an I-can’t-lift-my-arm-above-my-head kind of way.

I heard the prettiest version of Over The Rainbow during yoga today.  I don’t know a lot about Eva Cassidy (she was local to the area and she’s dead – that’s the extent of my knowledge),  but I have really really liked everything I’ve heard her do.

Raise your hand if you want to watch an adorable kitten get his ass handed to him by an equally adorable bunny.  That’s right.  Everyone in the whole wide world just raised their hands.  Even though most of them don’t read me.  They just knew it was the right – no, the ONLY – thing to do.

Who knew that in a battle of bunny vs. kitten, the kitten would lose?  (From The Daily What, of course.)

In other adorable news, the Shiba Inu Puppy Cam is back. Glad to be of service.

Here’s a little bit of randomness to end your day.

First, a video of Riley running across the yard.  I’ve been paying a lot of attention to Roxy lately (she hurt her leg while staying at the kennel two weeks ago, and we’re babying her), and I think he’s feeling neglected.

Check this out!  The shin-kicking in this video happened in Chipping Campden, the village we stayed in.  (Source and article.)

Last, can someone please explain this fortune to me?

Love is the first feeling people feel, because love is nice.

Was it written by a four-year-old?

What to read?  I think I need help.  I started a book of short stories by Harlan Ellison before we left for England.  I left it behind because it’s hardcover, and I didn’t want to travel with it.  The stories are all somewhat depressing, so I’m not in a hurry to get back to it.  I started Little, Big on the plane ride over, but it’s hard to get into and I’m thinking about giving up.  Has anyone read it?  Should I keep going?  I finished Coming Home (this was my second time through) late last night.  I love that book.  The book club I may or may not be a member of read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks this past month.  I missed the meeting because of our trip.  I have it, but I don’t think I’m anywhere near in the mood for something like that.  That would mean branching out, and I just don’t feel like doing that today.  Maybe it’s the stormy weather, but I want comfort reading.  Wait – I think I have the solution.  I haven’t read the most recent Dresden Files book, and from there I may move on to Jim Butcher’s fantasy series.  Hooray for decisions!  You guys are so helpful. 

We had a request for more dog videos, so here’s one of the dogs in the rain.

Hey, I didn’t promise it would be interesting.  They don’t do much that’s interesting…