This was an exciting weekend. Not all of it exciting in a good way. Priya late last week had once again injured herself. A little scratch on her throat, which over the course of a few days became irritated and infected. Tigs noticed how bad it looked on Saturday morning, and we decided to take her to the vet. There aren’t a whole lot of emergency vets who know anything about hamsters, but one of them happens to be in Bel Air. We didn’t have to wait too long before they sent us in to be seen by the vet, and unsurprisingly Virginia predicted *exactly* what the vet would say. There was a funny moment while the vet was checking out Priya's cheek pouches, and he said, “There’s something green in here…” and out pops a small, green, slightly chewed sphere. “Mung bean,” Virginia and I said together. Priya just looked mad, and has not stopped looking mad since.

We were given antibiotics and benebac, as well as a sheet on hamster care. Giving Virginia a sheet on hamster care is kinda like giving Michelangelo a how-to-paint book, but it’s the thought that counts.

After that I trekked up to Lancaster to visit with my cousins. Dragging along a planet and some starships, we quickly divided up the fleets between the 4 of us. Cory and I took the Chaos fleet, and Alex and their friend Aubrey took the Imperial ships. There will probably be a separate post about that, once I go through all the pictures I took. The game was fun, and close, including things like one ship getting shot at by 18 torpedoes, ships ramming, and a light cruiser that survived far more then it should have. In the end the Imperials had crippled most of the chaos fleet and held the board, though they sustained some very serious losses. End result would have been a minor victory. We then played some Halo. I never want to play against Cory again. He’s insanely good at it! He switches between the sniper rifle and the missile launcher (which he uses at close range) for his kills. We ended up playing the 3 of us against him. By the time he got his 50 kills, we had only killed him 11 times. Total.

Last night I chopped up a bunch of stuff for chili, which is in the crock pot right now. There is a green pepper, a yellow squash, a potato, a quarter cup of dry roasted peanuts, and red, black and pinto beans, as well as a can of beets. It’s been cooking all day, and I can’t wait to taste it.

Five on Friday - Lifelines
If you were on a game show and could phone a friend for help, who would your lifelines be for sports, arts & music, literature, history and geography, and science?
Sports: Maybe one of the guys at work?
Art & Music: Tigs
Literature:
History & Geography: Monique
Science: Tigs

When you need someone with muscles to help you with a task, who’s the first one you call?
Me

When you need some creative help with ideas for a project, who’s the first person you call?
Tigs

When you have a moral dilemma and need advice, on whom do you rely most?
Tigs

When you need to know the best way to get somewhere, which of your directionally-gifted friends do you call upon first?
Google Maps

What is...

one place you volunteer (or would like to)? Why?
I do volunteer for the dog club, and I do it to maintain my membership.

one book you'd like to see made into a movie? Why?
Enders Game. They finally have the special effects technology to do it well.

one creature (living, extinct, or mythical) you'd like for a pet? Why?
Dinosaur. One of the small ones. Or a tiny dragon. I think it would be cool. Not very original, but still kinda cool.

one place on Earth you'd like to visit? Why?
I’ve wanted to visit the British Isles . Mostly because I want to go see the castles!

one talent or skill you'd like to develop? Why?
Sculpting, playing piano, painting… The sculpting and painting because I want to do so much more with my minis. And the playing piano, because it’s fun!

1. They say elephants never forget. Would you compare your memory to that of an elephant or gnat?
Sadly I would have to say gnat.

2. What kinds of things do you find it easy to remember?
Generally useless things, like the average number of crew members on a Galaxy class starship (1014) or the level cap of an elf in basic D&D (12).

3. What kinds of things do you find it difficult to remember?
Important things.

4. How does your short-term memory compare to your long-term memory?
Well, I generally find…. What was that again?

5. How do you commit things to memory? Do you use tricks, songs, images, word associations, or other little mnemonics?
I try to use them over and over again.




I have 2 take home tests that I’ve got to do this weekend, one for each of my classes. I’ve already worked on the Management one, but the accounting one? Ug. Not really looking forward to it. I haven’t even cracked the cover of it yet.

We’re taking Lucy to the vets tomorrow morning. Originally this was just to pick up the refills on a couple of her meds, but now with the two swollen ticks we’ve pulled off of her this week, and the red infected looking spots they left behind, we’re gonna have the vet take a look. We’ll also be hitting the comic store, and downtown Frederick , since her vet is up that way. Don’t ask why we picked a vet that’s an hour away from our house. We liked the practice, and the vet, and honestly we’re up in Frederick often enough that it’s not a big deal.

Things I would love to do this weekend, but probably won’t because somewhere along the way I became a responsible adult:
Buy $20-30 worth of plastic sheeting and tubing.
Spend hours measuring, cutting, gluing, and filing the plastic sheeting into the shape of starships.
Spend further hours painting said starships.
Spend ~ $60 on a dremel
Use dremel to cut apart metal chaos terminators.
Use plastic sheeting to bulk up terminators
Reassemble terminators.
Take some more hours to paint terminators.
Spend $3-6 on a sphere, probably wooden, about softball size.
Paint sphere to look like a planet.

1. Have you ever been pulled over? How many times? I’ve been pulled over a couple of time for speeding, and driving with an expired registration.

2. What are you most likely to be pulled over for? (Speeding? Reckless driving? Expired tags/inspection? Bad signal/headlight?) In the future? Probably something stupid like a bad signal.

3. You're driving along on your merry way when you see a police car. What is your first thought? I check the speed I’m going.

4. When you see a cop car, do you hit your brakes or keep your foot on the gas? I keep my foot on the gas. Maybe let up on it a bit, depending on how fast I’m going.

5. What's your personal speed limit? How do you determine what it is for any given road? Usually around 5mph over the listed speed limit. This of course depends on how much over the limit everyone else is going.

6. What’s something you suspect you regularly overpay for? Car insurance.

7. What’s something you suspect you regularly underpay for?

8. What’s taking up more of your time than it should? The leasing office

9. What’s causing you stress only because you let it? Life.

10. If all your karma were based on your positive and negative attitudes, would it be in good shape, in bad shape, or perfectly in balance? It would be in good shape, but it would need a little work.

11. If you were a full course meal what would you be?
soup: French Onion
salad: Caesar
meat: Roast Pork
dessert: Pumpkin Pie with Vanilla Ica Cream!
beverage: Spiced Apple Cider

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Over the weekend tigergladys and I spend a couple of hours each day painting agility equipment at the club. Each day we went early and met up with the owners of another puppy named Tonks, and we gave the puppies the chance to play with each other. It went really well, they really liked each other, and they tired themselves out with greater ease and pleasure then we could do. The best part was that they offered to take Lucy during the day over the next couple of weeks, rather then us putting her into doggie daycare at Petco or the vets office.

Tuesday was Lucy’s first time spending the day not at home and not with us since we got her. She loved it, and now seems to love us less. She also came home completely exhausted. We needed to make a quick trip to Trader Joe's, and because she didn’t even get off the couch as we were leaving we decided to not lock her in the kitchen. When we got home, she had moved to the floor, but that was it. She was so exhausted I had to carry her upstairs at bedtime. She was ready to sleep on the couch rather then move!

As most of you know Friday we got a letter from the leasing office letting us know that they would be doing inspections of the property between the 4th and the 14th. With the arrival of the letter I contacted the bank where we got our car loan about getting pre-approved for a mortgage, and Tuesday we heard back. We’re pre-approved for $190,000, which depending on where we look can get us a fair house. That is of course, more then we can currently afford, though by the time Spring rolls around I should be making significantly more. So now it’s time to contact a realtor, and get ourselves into our own house!

In addition to painting, finding some place for Lucy to go for the next 2 weeks, and calling the bank, we spent a whole lot of time cleaning. It’s probably one of the top 3 cleanest the house has been since we moved in. It’s kind of nice having it all clean, but having to keep it clean for the inspections is a pain.

I finished the game of Galactic Civilizations that I was playing before. I won through cultural domination of the galaxy. It happened rather quickly too. I think I’m going to go for a variety of game styles as I go along, including an alliance/diplomatic victory, a military victory, and a technological victory, just to see how the game plays differently while attempting those styles. I have however discovered that trying to ally with some of the minor civilizations isn’t all that great an idea. It doesn’t work all that well.

I don’t know if it’s because of playing Galactic Civ that I’m also in the mood to work on my Battlefleet Gothic stuff, or I’ve been playing Galactic Civ because I’m in a sci-fi mood. And I don’t just want to paint them, but I want to do some converting and even some scratch building! Of course all this desire will come to very little. There is too much else going on that needs to be taken care of right now, and many other projects that have a significantly higher priority. Besides, I need more storage for my painted minis. I can keep the unpainted ones in ziplock bags, but ones that I’ve actually finished (and want to keep) need someplace safe to go.

Speaking of higher priority, Wednesday night was accounting. 201 seems to be more about theory and a deeper understanding of why we did all of the things we did in 101 and 102. The professor has stated a couple of times now that it’s not a bookkeeping course, it’s about understanding why you do bookkeeping the way you do. This is, as far as I’m concerned, a great thing. I love theory. Everything works and makes sense, in theory. We’ll see if theory matches reality in this case.

Thursday was payday, so we went to the bank, then came home and watched some TV.

Friday I took off to take Lucy to the vet. She was about due for her rabies vaccination. Her appointment was at 8:30, so up early we headed off. Lucy, thinking we were going to see her friend Tonks again was thrilled to get in the car, but when we hadn’t arrived after about 20 minutes she started to get a little upset with me. She eventually settled down, and just watched out the windows as we drove along. Things went fine at the vets, and he complimented Lucy on how beautiful she was. I agreed, saying she was a pretty girl. He then said that, yes, she is pretty, but he was talking about her personality.

Once we finished up at the vets I took Lucy off on a house hunt. I had found an online listing for a house from 1850 with over an acre of land for a mere $119,000. Ok, it is out in the middle of nowhere, but I’m willing to do the long commute thing for a house at that price. Anyway, we eventually found it (I forgot to print directions, and only had the printable flyer from the web) and it was awful. It was built in the 1850s, maybe updated once in the 1950s, and apparently by midgets who hate windows. Standing on the porch I could hit my head on the ceiling by standing on my toes. The sides of the house each had only one window. The front had 5. The sheds and barn on the land were kinda cool, though also needed some structural work. All in all it was a little disappointing, but not really surprising. Also it is right next to a quarry. That’s what that big white thing is on the map. It’s in a great little town though. Shame.

We then rode back to Frederick , swung by Two Paws Up and Brainstorm Comics, and then onto the park to relax, enjoy lunch, and get some homework done. We succeeded in the first two, and then Lucy started to feel the vaccines. On top of that the day was getting rather hot by this point, so we packed up and headed to the dog club building to get out of the sun. In spite of not feeling all that great Lucy really wanted to play, so again, not a lot of homework got done. Around 4 we headed home, and spent the rest of the night vegging out.

That was all last week. Tomorrow (maybe) I'll post about this past week.

It was a full weekend once again. Saturday we took Lucy up to visit her doctor in Frederick . We discussed her change in bathroom habits, and they managed to collect a urine sample. It was kind of fun to watch the tech follow Lucy as she walked around the side of the vet's office with a cat food bowl, which she deftly slid under Lucy just as she squatted. They probably called today with the test results from that, but seeing as I left the cell phone at home this morning, I’ll have to wait a bit to find out. While at the vet's, Lucy also got a booster on one of her vaccines.

When we left the vet's office we went back down to downtown Frederick to hit the usual places and walk around a bunch. Frederick does this thing on the first Saturday of every month, a themed event. This Saturday was a celebration of May/Spring and so all the retailers downtown were giving away flowers. You could get a flower in every shop, and if you hit all the shops you would end the day with a huge bouquet. We didn't hit every store, and some seemed to be out, but we still have a vase full of flowers in the living room because of it! Around the 4th time going around downtown Lucy started to show signs of the vaccine hitting her; she slowed down and was walking as if slightly dizzy. So we bundled her back into the car, and drove up the road to Brainstorm Comics.

You might not have known it, but Saturday was the annual Free Comic Book Day. This has always been a pretty big day for me, ever since they started doing it about 5 years ago. Disappointingly FCBD at Brainstorm was only slightly better than Lancaster Comic Shop's showing 2 years ago. It’s especially disappointing considering the events that That’s Entertainment and Sarge’s put on. But we got our books, headed home, and Lucy crashed for the rest of the night! (One of the free comics featured a corgi artist - Christian Slade.)

Sunday felt a bit more like Monday then it usually does - we got up early, put Lucy in the kitchen, and headed to an AKC Agility Trial down in Millersville, to volunteer for the ODTC again. This time was a little different as Kim, Cory, and Alex (aunt, cousin, cousin) came down from PA to see it with us. I felt a little bad about having to work at the event while they were watching, but they all seemed to really enjoy it. Kim was thrilled at all the poodles that were running, and Tigs says she wants a puppy, as Lucy is now old. For the record, Lucy isn’t even a year old at this point. (There were some very cute puppies though. One was named after the tonksmonster.) The boys are going to be pushing to get a dog more often now I think.

When we got home Sunday evening Lucy was thrilled to see us, and all the toys we brought home for her. (Each part of the event you work you get a coupon good for a toy, or $2 off food at the event, or $2 off the cost to register to run a dog at an event during 2007. We aren't going to be running a dog in 2007 and we brought our own food. Between the 2 of us we collected a total of 18 coupons, and brought home 16 toys, with two left over as proof that we were there.) However, Lucy was still worn out from the vaccine, and so we all relaxed on the couch and watched Voyager.

Next weekend is just as booked. Saturday, I’ll be going to a Hirst Arts party up near Harrisburg PA with some people I met on the INTERNET, while Tigs and Lucy will be going back to Frederick to go to the opening day of a new dog park. Sunday we are planning on tackling the BWI trail. Over 12 miles long! It’s the longest we’ve attempted yet! We’re hoping to be up to doing the Maryland portion of the Appalachian Trail this fall (40+ miles).

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White Dwarf is Games Workshop’s monthly publication that is about half advertisement and half content. Of the half of the magazine that contains useful content for GW's various games, only half of it (a quarter of the original) is generally interesting to me, and most of it is more entertaining then useful. However, several years worth of issues were taking up space on one of the bookshelves and in the closet. It’s amazing how it grows to fill all that space… Anyway, I decided that to make my life a little easier I would cut up my magazines, taking out the articles that interested me, and the pictures that inspired me. Last night I finished putting all the ones I wanted to keep into page holders that fit in a 3-ring binder. It’s nice being able to flip open an binder and see all the articles that have interested me since I’ve started this, and none of the fluff. Now the only thing I need to worry about is what to do with the gutted White Dwarf issues. I gave a small stack to my cousins this weekend, and they may want the rest. Otherwise they’ll either end up in the dumpster or I may give them to the pediatric ward.

Currently stewing away in my crock pot is a little dish I threw together last night. It’s a potato stew of some sort. All measurements are questimates.
2 lbs. chopped potatoes
½ Large red onion
1 cup of orange and tan beans? No, I don’t know what type they are, we got them from Tigs’ sister.
½ cup of TVP
About a tablespoon of sea salt
1 cup of boxed french onion soup
4 cups of water

One of the best things about using the crock pot is the fact that the house always smells so wonderful when it’s been going all day and I come home from work. Well see how it turns out when I get home tonight!

**Edited to add**
It's kinda like mashed potatoes, with a little more flavor. Toss in some shredded cheese and pepper and it's really good! Very filling too. All in all a success!

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Lucy has a cold. Or something. It could be the flu. Whatever it is it has a few less then pleasant side effects. She also hasn’t really been sleeping through the night. She’s been waking up around 3 or 4 to go to the bathroom. We tend to keep the bedroom door closed at night, so when Lucy decides she needs to go I get up and open the door for her. It then takes her a little while to settle down. I thought that this would bother me more then it does. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t jump up all cheerful with bells on or anything, but I can get up, open the door, even fill her water bowl if its empty and fall back into bed without it feeling like it’s interrupted my sleep.

I just hope she (and Tigs) feel better soon.

For about a month now one of my hamsters has been sick. She has some sort of respiratory problem. I say "some sort" because no one can figure out what is wrong with her. We have taken her to two vets who both have experience with "exotics" who have looked at her, checked her, poked her, and prescribed antibiotics for her. The results of these two visits, along with every other home remedy that we have tried is that she is still sick. Nothing has touched it. Not antibiotics, not anti-inflammatory meds, not a humidifier. We've cleaned the tank, changed bedding from carefresh (which is rather dusty, but love it aside from that) to yesterdays news (no dust), we've gotten her infant cold medicine to try to treat the symptoms...

I understand that sometimes things are hard to diagnose. I understand that sometimes bugs are resistant.

I know the vets are both doing everything they can think of. Sadly they can think of very little, and that pisses me off. Not because they don't know, but the reason they don't know. No one takes their hamsters to the vets. While the vets I have see hamsters, and have some experience, no one has experience with hamsters like they do with cats or dogs or kids. People treat hamsters like disposable pets. They only cost $8, who is willing to pay $40 to treat them? You know what? I am. More even. But it wouldn't help, because there isn't anyone out there to throw the money at. There isn't anyone who can help.

Some will say that their vets don't see hamsters. This is because no one brings them to the vets, so they don't have any experience, so they aren't qualified to see them. If there was enough call for it, vets would specialize, they would become familiar with hamsters, and maybe, just maybe, they would be able to help.

But hamsters only cost eight dollars. Hamsters only live a couple of years anyway. Why bother...

I bother because I care. And I will continue to talk to the vets, ask for ideas, see if they have read anything new, anything old, anything that will help.

x-posted to hamsters, mesocricetus

Still waiting to hear about the town house.... If I don't hear anything by lunch time I'm going to call them.

Nebula is still the same... What do you do when nothing seems to help? When she is acting normal, but for the breathing problems? How much effort do we go to to figure this out?

It turns out that being sinister has it's upsides. While it may be harder to keep your claws clean while writing, or finding a pair of shears that don't give you a bruise, it may just help you stay alive... or at least improve your chances of being a good cricket batsman.

I have sent in the last piece of required information to the leasing office. Now the waiting truly begins. We will know, at the latest, by Monday morning.

Nebula hasn't really improved any. In fact this morning it sounded even worse then before. It makes me wonder, can hamsters have asthma? We did 12 days of antibiotics, and a week of anti-inflammatory meds. We have tried Vic's rub, a penguin humidifier, moving her to a different spot in the room, to a different state, cleaned her tank, given her warm milk and honey (which she really likes!) and nothing really seems to help. It can't be bacterial, it could be environmental, it's probably viral, but it could be something else. She started making noise back about a month ago. She has seen 2 vets, and while she has lost a little weight she still seems healthy... aside from the breathing thing.

At this point I am out of ideas... We need a Dr. House DVM... *sigh* Maybe he will do: Dr. Joerg Mayer