Why, moongirl, we must be related! We currently have two cats--one big fat calico (spayed female), and one very sleek black cat (female)...their names--Fat Cat and Skinny Kitty. It's not that we didn't TRY other names, but nothing else fit them quite as well!

While our cat agreed with her true name of Emily as presented my friend, we usually call her Boss Lady. Today, however, for the second weekend day in a row, she woke me up at 7:00 a.m. She may find herself being called Banished to the Outdoors Lady if she keeps this up!

And our two dogs, who we adopted already saddled with the creative names of Rusty and Isaac, generally get called variations of Dumb and Dumber, Chubby or Blondie (for Isaac the lab), Neurotic Mess (for Rusty the neurotic mess golden retriever), etc. They answer to just about anything as long as we call them!

Aw! Adopting... well, we lost our cat last October. I'd be ready to adopt another cat yesterday, but DH is holding out for a dog, and that means a fence (and poop patrol). So I don't know when we're going to fill up our pet roll. Heh.

I’m going to be dog sitting for my brother and sister-in-law for about 10-12 days while they attend an air show (they are both pilots). They have a dog from a rescue shelter that is half border collie and half pointer named Ace. Ace is a very sweet, intelligent 1-year-old dog and I would like to teach him a trick while they are gone (they know I’m going to do this). He already knows most of the basics - shake, sit, speak, lay down, barrel roll (basic roll over). They’ve also taught him to stay on the porch until the plane’s propeller stops spinning (very important!). I would like to teach him something that uses an aviation-related command – such as spin, take-off, clear, fly, soar, rotate, land, etc. (nothing complicated).

So I’m looking for some suggestions from all y’all. Any neat tricks you’ve taught your dogs? I know Ace probably won’t have the trick down by the time they get home, but at least it will be a start.

unbridled, I've never been into the idea of teaching any of the schnauzers that have been in my family "tricks," but I'm not adverse to teaching them how to play.

Maybe you can see if this puppy (and at a year, that's still a puppy you're dealing with) can learn to chase and retrieve a frisbee. (And no, I don't mean RobFrisbee, either. I mean the plastic disc.) It's great exercise for them (chasing, catching, jumping, retrieving) and a lot more fun for the human and the canine.

And chasing a frisbee certainly involves a large amount of "flying," which would fit right into your aviation theme!

How long is the interval between filming and airtime (if you're allowed to tell us)? I hadn't watched Jeopordy in a while (long enough that I still remember a 5-episode maximum stay, FWIW), but watched a couple times this week both in preparation for your appearance and because I heard about Ken's winning streak from someone at work, and Alex was trying to pretend that there wasn't a delay with some comment about viewers writing a screenplay about Ken, or something along those lines.
Another seemingly random question - if they film in front of a live audience, do they all have to sign confidentiality clauses about who wins, etc?


hee!

posting status: It's taken me 2 1/2 years to reach 'Video Archivist,' since I just don't have the time to read tons of fora, and tend to fall behind, which is why I tend to hang out here at the MM - with the multiple topics coming and going, it's easier to contribute/be a part of the discussion, even if I'm a couple days behind.

Uniforms:
Jr high girls chorus at church - typical white/black, with a lovely mulit-coloured paisley-ish scarf/bow thing made of some ultra-shiny synthetic material. Very 'pretty', in a very late 80s/early 90s way.
Church musical when I was 9 or so: I was 'the announcer' (because the music director apparantly felt that if you weren't a soprano, you didn't deserve to have singing roles. Not that I'm bitter or anything.), but said director decided that the announcer was clearly a male part, so I had to have my hair in a bun, etc. Right.
Jr high school band/choir - started with standard white/black. At the time the high school girls had to wear these snazzy red oversized bow/scarf things (again, late 80s), but by the time I was in grade 9, they upgraded to: tuxedo shirt with bowtie and cumburbund - red for the jr high groups, royal blue for sr high. And the folds on the cumburbund had to face the right direction (and those things would make the anorexic Olsen girl look big, they're that unflattering to the female form). And skirts - must be skirts, and long ones. Never mind the fact that some of us played instruments that required us to sit with legs somewhat apart (clarinet, for example) - just find a skirt that's loose enough. After I left, I think they finally relaxed a bit on that one, and allowed pants.
I enjoyed (and sortof miss) my choir/band experiences, but not the various butt-ugly outfits.

edited for grammar

To answer your Jeopardy questions, Kanuck, when I was on, we taped on Pearl Harbor Day (Dec. 6) and it aired the following St. Patrick's Day. So just over three months between taping and air.

And the audience never had to sign anything when I used to go to tapings -- I went to the Tournament of Champions taping after my appearance since the woman who beat me did so on her 5th day, so went to cheer her on -- but was just asked to keep the secret. And I never heard of anybody not willing to do that. It's part of the fun!

Or, instead of a frisbee (Rob or otherwise), you could get a flying squirrel. (I just love that company's products!)

Ooooh... band uniforms. *ugh* My high school had a huge fiasco over those. My senior year, I was in band, orchestra, and choir- each requiring a different uniform.

Band- uniforms were school issued, at least for guys. We were stuffed in tuxes, 100% wool, that restricted breathing (yes, my band teacher was an idiot). Bowtie, cumberbund, jacket, and a severly overstarched shirt. The girls fought and won their battle and were allowed to wear what they wanted as long as it was a dressy white blouse with a black skirt, at least knee length. Originally, they wore school issued skirts that were tacky, but uniform in style, length, and very '70s.
Orchestra- black and white. Didn't matter what, as long as it was black and white. This meant half the group wore all black, a few wore all white, and others wore the traditional white top, black bottom. And of course, a few cello playing freshmen thought miniskirts were a good idea. Thus, we looked as sloppy as we sounded.
Choir- robes with bib overlays, but had to wear black and white underneath.

My high school loved joint concerts, so whenever we had one, I was forced to wear my tux under my choir robe, I think a total of 6-7 layers, and somehow not pass out.

My choir and band at school was always just the standard black and white. For one choir performance we had wanted to try something different and do black on top and white on the bottom, but not enough people had clothes that fit that requirement.

unbridled Teach him to say "Please". I taught Saucy how to do this by placing a piece of scotch tape on the side of his muzzle. Every time he tried to wipe it off, I gave the command "say please" and gave him a treat. After a few times, I tried it without the tape. Once he's got it down, start making him "say please" before you give him anything. It took a while, but now, whenever he wants something, he swipes his nose with his paw. The vet people LOVE it. I realize, of course, that if I ever have to give him up, his new owners will think he's crazy "why does this dog swipe his nose with his paw all the time?!??!??"

I guess I'll have to keep him! which is good, since I've already had him for 7 years.

unbridled, I've had very good luck teaching dogs to spin. It's basically chasing their tail on command. Take a small treat and use it to lure their head towards their tail, moving them around in a circle. If they don't like going in a clockwise direction try counter-clockwise, some dogs are left/right oriented. Get them to do this a couple of times before you add the spin command and they'll understand better. I teach this trick to all of my puppy and beginning obedience classes. It's also a good way to get the pups to clean their feet by spinning a couple of times on the doormat before they enter the house! Good luck...

Since kittens were brought up, I can share my current anxiety. I work at Petsmart on the weekends, and we have adoption fairs most Saturdays. I'm fostering a pair of kittens for one of the adoption groups. They're a pair of feral brothers that I needed to lavish attention on so they could stop being fearful of people. They're going to their first adoption show next week. My issue is that the adoption group doesn't seem to be doing a good job at adopting their cats out! Saturday after Saturday, I see the other adoption groups turning in paperwork, getting their cats into homes, while the one I'm working with turns in nothing, or not nearly as many. I'm scared that the group, while obviously wanting to find the best permanent home for their cats, has swung too far the other way and may be too stringent about adopting them out at all.

There's really nothing I can do, but I've been fretting about it, so I thought I'd share. I can't keep the kittens for myself, but I'm very concerned about getting them into a good home or homes, because they're horribly cute and they're just starting to come out of their shells and purr in my lap.

Kanuck, my Jeopardy taping day was March 10 so there has been about 4 months between taping and the showing.

Macaddict, she will be at the party but she has never put on that much perfume - before -- it was a special family get together. The family was getting together for Daughter #2's 16th Birthday, Daughter #1 even came in from Chicago for the weekend. So, the entire family is together along with assorted other relatives and then daughter #1's boyfriend proposes in front of the entire family. When she told us the story, my first thought was, well, poor daughter # 2 - way to take attention away from her big day. You can get engaged at any time but you only turn 16 once. Its very 16 Candles.

Ah , 16 Candles. I saw it on my 16th birthday - and rewatched it last month, 20 years later. I still enjoyed it, but a reminder that I am getting old (and perhaps a bit more cynical).

For the 20th anniversary of my 16th birthday, my husband gave me a Roomba (robatic vaccuum) and a computer game "A Weekend in Capri". One afternoon, while trying to find my way around Capri, the room started moving, and I almost fell out of my chair. I had to put my head between my knees until the room stopped spinning, and then I felt like I had motion sickness (which I am prone to, mostly headaches, only vomiting on rough boat rides) for days. It went away, but has come back briefly when scrolling on the computer (I haven't dared go back to Capri) or fastforwarding TIVO. Has anyone experienced anything like this? How have you dealt with it?

I was in bad shape after Friday - busy computer day at work and I was working on a spreadsheet tracking girls names with data from the SS webpage (slightly obsessive and premature - my husband and I are trying, but without luck yet, but I got some good data). I went screen free on Saturday, but didn't start feeling better until midday Sunday. Luckily I start a months vacation Friday, and will be away from computer and TV.

I spent my 16th birthday in an all-day choir practice (hey! topic cross!) and the Oklahoma City bombing was on my 18th birthday. I've been vaugely suspicious of meaningful-number birthdays ever since.

That's weird, we supposedly had an earthquake here in the Midwest. Slept through it. However, other people were shaken awake. Anyone notice it? The only times I actually felt an earthquake were in Seattle - one felt like a short jolt like a car had run into the wall downstairs, and the other one actually rolled up and down, a bit like standing up on a bus going over a bump.

I heard about the earthquake, but didn't hear how strong it was. Anybody know the Richter on it?

Personally, if I'm never in another earthquake, it won't be too soon. I was 10 miles from the epicenter of Northridge. All I can compare it to is like taking a ride in a blender, but in your own bedroom at 4:30 a.m. It really messes with your head, too; my daughter and I both still have occasional claustrophic attacks to this day from it, which I understand is perfectly normal so I don't worry about it. It's very disconcerting to lose faith in the firmness of the ground under your feet, however!

The articles I've seen have said it was 4.5. I've only ever been in one earthquake in Las Vegas a couple of years ago, and that one was barely strong enough for people to notice, something like a 1.9. I remember thinking that a heavy truck must've gone by, only to find out later that it was an earthquake.

The epicenter of that earthquake was near Ottawa, Illinois, about 75 miles southwest of Chicago. It was around 1:15 am central time this morning, plus or minus a few minutes.

A 4.5 is generally noticeable, although it all depends on geology and distance and all. Especially if it's just a single jolt. I get that level of shaking at my house all the time now (love the firm ground....not!.... that New Orleans-area houses are built on; it's like jello!) whenever a truck drives by a block away. It's gotten me over some of my residual insecurities about the ground shaking, anyway.

They do say that the biggest Big One won't be in California, but will be on the New Madrid fault in the Midwest, and that we're long overdue for it. I'm not anxious to see that one arrive, considering that I'm downstream of everything that would get disrupted!

When I lived in San Francisco, I never noticed anything less than a 5.0. I think the New Madrid fault shook once in the mid to late 60s, when I was a child in the Midwest. I was home but my dad wasn't so I think it might have been during the summer. I remember running out into the street in a panic, but that's all I remember.

Our tornado was worse.

Earthquakes and tornados: A very good reason to live on the East Coast. Both seriously skeeve me out, but perhaps it's just that I'm just more used to hurricanes, our local particular threat (besides the Democratic National Convention).
The DNC will be a sterling opportunity to flee town. I was originally proud and excited that it was coming to Boston, but the city's unique and byzantine blend of corrupt pols, power mongers and bureaucratic idiots had made me scared instead.
JDG, the dizzyness could be vertigo, a very irritating illness that appears for no apparent reason. It could also be pregnancy, although you sound definite that that is not the case. I almost passed out a couple times whilst gravid (A perfectly awful word, in my opinion. Why I used it, I don't know.)

Shockingly enough, tornados have hit near my parents house in the Berkshires before - they come through every couple of years.

I really don't want to be in New York during the Republican convention. Besides the fact there will be a ton of people here, they're Republicans! They hate this city. Why are they coming here?

On a better note, yesterday I went to my first Pride parade and had a blast. The weather was absolutely perfect. After the parade Last Dodo and I joined the lovely and beautiful skagirl and whereverthefk for drinks and food. I love New York.

Whoot! I! Felt! The earthquake! My cat woke me up at 1:00am, bugging the crap out of me. I fussed so much with her, I woke up Hubby. He turned on the ceiling fan and went back to bed. Five minutes later, the bedroom door started shaking, then the dresser. I kept shaking my husband, going, “Honey! Something’s happening!” He woke up just as it stopped except for the door still shaking. I said I thought it was an earthquake. He said, no, probably the ceiling fan got out of whack and shook so much it was rattling the door. He threw a pillow against the door to stop the rattling and went back to bed. I stayed awake forever (OK, an hour) because I was so excited and because the cat still wouldn’t leave me alone. Then this morning Hubby e-mailed me and said that it had been an earthquake (Ottowa is probably 30-40 miles from me, I think). Ha! Oh did I do a virtual smarty-pants dance at him! And I pointed out that the cat was clearly trying to wake me up to save my life, but notice she didn’t try to wake him up at all. ~snicker~

Sorry for the long post, but I was so excited!

Hildy, I had to look gravid up, you learn something new everyday. I could actually be gravid, but am trying to avoid being overanxious and excited about it, and so am waiting until I am late before allowing myself to think it is true. Are vertigo like symptoms common with pregnancy? Can anything be done about it?

JDG, I've passed out a few times in my life (6 or 7 times). I mean fully unconscious, on the floor, dead to the world passed out. In my case, it's because I have low blood pressure (within normal range, but still low). If I've done (or not done) something that lowers my blood pressure--like not eating well, not sleeping, or indulging in various substances that aren't good for you--I'll get light-headed and dizzy just as you described. Sometimes, it goes farther, and I pass out completely. It happened once in a hotel restaurant--very public and very embarrassing. It's scary, but once my blood pressure comes back up, I'm fine in a few minutes. It's not that much to worry about, but you might want to have your doctor check your blood pressure.

I can't speak to the symptoms of pregnancy because I've never been pregnant. So I leave that to those who know from first-hand experience.

Bubbacat I tend towards high blood pressure, so I don't think that is it. I did have a check-up not long before the first 'attack' and was fine then. I would like to think I am pregnant, but it is the long lasting head ache that I am worried about. Since it is brought on by computer/TV use I don't like the idea of having to limit my screen time (since work will have to win out over TWoP). That and the ferry trip to Nova Scotia next week (I just googled and found out Dramamine is a no-no when gravid).

col1999, when I lived in San Francisco, my cats would react before an earthquake. Once, as I was trying to leave, they ran around in front of the door crying. Or they'd otherwise behave as though something was wrong. So I'm not surprised your cat woke you shortly before it happened.

Definitely do the "I told you so" thing tonight. Since it's not over something really meaningful between you, it could be fun instead of annoying.

JDG, have a fantastic time in Nova Scotia! I'd be interested to hear how your trip went when you get back. Mr. Anglican and I are thinking of going there later this summer. We can't really afford it, but since we haven't had a real vacation in about eight years, are justifying it on the basis that we'll go mad if we don't get to go somewhere soon.

Btw, have you tried taking ginger for the motion sickness?

JDG, let me know how Nova Scotia goes eh. I'm going to Halifax for a week in August to meet up with some internet buddies. I'll wave at you Anglican if you and Mr. Anglican go at the same time. Hell, I wave in the direction of whatever city I am in when switching planes in an airport if someone I know lives in the general surrounding area.

I want a cat! Must wait two years more.....grr.....

I vote Amelia.

Okay, that's another argument for getting another cat again sooner rather than later: Earthquake Early Warning System.

Strangely enough, we went hiking not far from Ottawa IL a couple of weeks ago - the town of Utica was hit by a tornado (killed several people in a flattened bar) and they're still rebuilding. Now this earthquake - they surely must have felt it. Now I feel even more we might need to go there for their 4th of July weekend parade and inject some more dollars in the local economy.

I remember reading a few years ago about a military family that was stationed in the Phillippines, and lost everything when Mt. Pinatubo blew.

So they got transferred to Florida. Just in time to lose everything when Andrew flattened Homestead.

So they ended up in San Francisco. Just in time for the Loma Prieta quake.

Note to self: Make sure they're not living in my neighborhood. So far they haven't been hit by a tornado that I know of, but we do get tornadoes around here so odds are not in their favor.

My husband has planned the Nova Scotia trip - he gets so little vacation, so he gets to choose, I will fill you in when I return. I went when I was 12, traveling with neighbors to keep their young kids occupied. I will stay in New England for three weeks after visiting friends and family, while Mr. JDG returns to Maryland, back to work for him. Gotta love working in the school system. I only feel a little guilty about abandoning him for 3 weeks. Although if I am pregnant and having a rough time of it, it would be better to be together. He should suffer along with me.

Thanks for the Jeopardy info, MamaTiger and M. Darcy. Yes, I am a geek.

JDG, what you describe sounds like vertigo - basically, an inner ear imbalance causing the spinning feeling, which could be related to a viral infection, itsy-bitsy crsytals deposited in the canals in the inner ear, or a few other less-common things. Rapid head or eye movements can set off an attack (the brain gets confused because the signals coming from the eyes and inner ears don't match, and you end up feeling spinny/off-balance/nauseous). In most cases, things will settle down over serveral days to weeks, and until then, do your best to avoid triggering an episode (easier said than done, I'm sure).

It's also possible that you could have a viral inner ear infection causing your vertigo, in which case there are medications they can give you to help with it. I once had a viral inner ear infection that was so bad that I got out of bed and found myself at a 45 degree angle, crashing into the wall -- but zero nausea, which was so weird. The doctor gave me something that really helped a lot with the vertigo, although it did take a while to clear completely. So if it doesn't improve on its own, you might consider consulting your doctor.

Hey all, bonjour! The woman on the plane next to me on my way to Paris was wrapped up like a little ball of pain in her binky all the way. I should have realized that on a hot plane that wasn't a great thing. After my presentation (which went very well, I'm told) I went back to the hotel and had the worst chills I've had in 30 years. So I spent most of my Paris tourist time sick and tired and on the loopy tour buses plotting how I'll spend future vacations. And I couldn't taste anything. So many sweet waiters asking if my food wasn't good and me telling them it was wonderful I thought but I couldn't really taste it. And apparently my accent is so good that when I said, "je suis desole, je ne parle pas francais," the taxi drivers wouldn't believe me. But I love the taxi drivers and I know when I go back healthy I'll love Paris. I do think I got some good photos.

Many pages ago in discussions of names...Armoire's big brother's name is Chiffarobe.

Kitty Claude Lemieux is going through piglet period, but I must have faith he will become an adult and stop being quite so roly poly (he doesn't seem to lose weight on a diet, like his mom). Arthur came with his name. It doesn't fit him, I call him Buster Cat because he's just a sturdy little British shorthair and Buster fits. The late lamented Charlie came to me as Charlemagne, which just was too elitist. He was the most bestest cat in the history of cats and was usually called Baby Cat, Chuck, or Chaz. Mr. Darcy (so many Austen fans about) was white and soft like a rabbit's foot and so was often called Bunny Cat.

I have a friend with a crazed calico called Fido. And a friend with a gray cat named Plaid.

My brother taught our dog to hold a treat on his nose, sitting patiently, until bro said "okay." Then dog would then flip treat into air, catch it, and eat it. He also did "beg" which was merely rising to seated with paws in air, and then "beg pretty" which was waving paws while in beg position.

I leave Wednesday for Seattle. I really don't think my body will know what time it is ever again.

GinevradiBenci I wanted to know about Petsmart adoption program. Do all petsmart stores have this program? Would it run outside the US (I'm in Canada)?

I have a friend who has a ferral kitten in her back yard, she can't take it in, as she already has 2 indoor cats (both use to be ferrel) and two outside ferral (ish) cats she feeds (and who she had spade). The SPCA here said they wouldn't take the kitten because it was ferral but we didn't think of the pet stores.

Omoo, Petsmart stores all have a pet adoption program as part of a company wide project. Check the first link for the local store and contact them.

Omoo - I know in the Ottawa area that PetSmart and PetCetera both have cats available for adoption that come from the Humane Society. Have you tried bringing the feral cats to the Socity? They have a foster program.

ETA: Ha! Take THAT Stephen Harper!

Thanks for all the info about Vertigo. I feel like I would know if I had an ear infection, I am not having ear pain. Kanuck!, the rapid eye movement setting it off makes sense, scrolling on the computer does set it off, and while my eyes aren't moving, I imagine it has the same result. I don't have time for a doctor's appointment before I head on vacation, but I have a chiropractor appt tomorrow, so I will mention it to him. And maybe we'll ear candle tonight. If a month's vacation away from work, computer and TV doesn't do it, I will have to get it looked at when I get back. And I will know if I am pregnant by then.

I had zero ear pain with my vertigo infection, JDG -- it wasn't like a bacterial infection with fluid buildup and concomittant pain and pressure. So that may not be a good indication. Just my experience, obviously, but our receptionist at work had the exact same thing a couple weeks ago and also had no ear pain, but her doctor told her it was a viral inner ear infection as well, so clearly I'm not crazy.

Yeah, what theschnauzers and devajd said. Every Petsmart works with local groups to provide space for adoption fairs - for example, we have one group that brings their cats in every week, and uses the in-store adoption cages, but we also have two other cat groups and three dog groups that come in at various times (sometimes only once a month, sometimes more.) So it's not Petsmart per say doing the adoption programs, they just provide space and publicity and fundraising for the groups.

I'm so anxious about these little guys, because I don't want them to languish in foster care, but I also obviously don't want them to go to a crappy home. I was just getting nervous, processing all the adoption papers for the other group that was showing their cats, while processing none for the group that I'm fostering for! I'm probably just making a big deal out of nothing, but I want the best for these two little fuzzy tatertots, so I worry.

Thanks for the pet adoption information, I'll pass it on to my friend and see what she does with it. It may be that this kitten has been out too long to be socialized easily. I'm also not sure she can afford to rent the trap again.

Well, DariaG, that was a good theory, but it didn't fly. Apparently, it was still annoying. (For him. Fun for me, annoying for him.) Finally last night he said all condescendingly (he grew up in California), "Honey, that wasn't an earthquake." Oh fine. So apparently if it doesn't register eleventy-million on the Richter Scale, it's not really an earthquake? Hmph. It was real enough for me, thank you very much. Just enough to rattle things, not strong enough to cause damage.

I think he's still jealous that the cat tried to save my life but not his.

And don't forget cute boy ogling (Mmmmm... Almost As Pretty As Oswald Boy...), AdorableDougWhoCouldNEVERHaveHadThisMuchPride-relatedFunInTX! And inadvertent lesbian encounters!! And CORN DOGS!!!

Yep, a good time was had by all. WOO!!!

Did anybody go to the Pride parade in Seattle? If so, you saw my mom getting wheeled down the street in style in a wheelchair with her church, which is trying to recruit from the gay and lesbian community, handing out Mardi Gras beads provided by yours truly. Not bad for an 82-year-old woman! And there's nobody in our family who's gay except for one lesbian cousin, but my mom apparently has been adopted by a whole bunch of young guys there in Seattle as their grandma, and is having the time of her life. Go, Mom!

Oh, and don't forget the gun inadvertently pointed at my head. That was fun.

Wait, that part made me pee my pants. Not fun.

But fishy stuff deep fried? mmm.... Margaritas? mmm.... Hot shirtless men?

twump