Giddy Up 2010

These are the pictures (so far) from my trip. I am in Morgan City, LA. We took a plantation tour yesterday. It was fascinating. So weird to be in the slaves’ quarters. You realize what a horrible existence it must have been.

I haven’t labeled all the photos yet, but the pictures of the tow truck are when my friend Janet broke down in Tucson. We ended up leaving her there waiting for a part. She got it fixed and then the alternator went out. They fixed that and then she broke down in New Mexico. Her husband, Larry flew in and they got it fixed and then it broke down AGAIN in Kerrville, TX. Janet is a trooper and she is an hour away. She only lost a couple of days getting here, but it’s been a rough road!!

The dress up photos are from our Scarlett O’Hara party. The party and the food were awesome. They had a great Cajun band and it was so much fun!! Another Anita from Georgia (I am Yankee Anita) put on the event with her friend, Karen. Everything has been top notch – the food, the tours, the fun….everything! We haven’t even done the swamp tours and Bourbon St. This has really been the vacation of a lifetime and I would’ve never gotten to do all this stuff without Anita and Karen!!!

I am on a trip to Louisiana to meet 100 Sisters On The Fly. I am at a KOA in San Antonio right now. We met up with some Sisters. We started our caravan with 4. One of the Sisters in our original caravan is my friend, Janet. She left her home Wednesday to meet us in Blythe. She (and her wonderful husband Larry) have been working overtime to get her trailer ready for the trip. She got a late start and got a stinking speeding ticket on the way to Blythe. We left Blythe Thursday morning and got to the last exit in Tucson and her car died. It was 4:00 and (LONG story short) we stayed at an RV park where they were so nice to us and we played Bingo and they fed us dinner. We thought the story was over and the part had to be overnight shipped to Tucson. We hated to leave her there, but felt comfortable with the wonderful people at the RV park.

Bless her heart……..(still condensing the story, believe it or not) they got the part and then the alternator went out. She got that fixed and FINALLY got on the road yesterday (Saturday). She called us last and she had broken down again!!!!!!!!!!! She was in a dark, scary part of Arizona and she was limping along to the next exit. I feel so bad and I know her husband feels bad also.

I guess her trip is officially over.

Rare Egyptian Cat Collection

This is Munchie -- who belongs to my vet, Dr. Haddock. I was pet sitting him last night and looked up and luckily had my camera. He reminds me of "E.T." when he was hiding with the stuffed animals.

Guac This Way

There is a sign on the way to Pala Casino that says,
"SLOW AVOCADOS AHEAD."
I think it's politically incorrect to make fun of avocados that way.

Howeird

I love animals. All animals. When I hear a story about 10 orphans and a dog getting hit by a train, my first thought is, “What happened to the dog?”
I have 3 cats I adore. Nelson is “The Baby.” Nelson has the weight of the world on his shoulders. He worries about everything. You can see the concerned look on his face all the time. He frets about the state of the world. He can manipulate my husband with his meows. He is a ventriloquist. He can stare at Steve and throw his plaintive cry without moving his mouth. Steve is putty in his hands. Nelson sees Daddy and starts screaming like someone stuck a skewer through him --- just because he hasn’t had a treat in over 3 hours. When my uncle Dwain comes over, Nelson knows he is a “fish,” and runs to the pantry door screaming for a Bonker. Nelson is pristine --- spending hours grooming and preening himself. He can spend 20 minutes tugging at a toenail cleaning “something,” out of there. I guess with all the tar pits in our home, he can get filthy.
Arthur is the casual dude. Nothing fazes him. He rarely meows --- why would he? Everything is cool. He casually accepts any dry food put in front of him. He casually eats little bits of something or other off the floor. If you could see inside his stomach, I am sure it would look like the inside of a vacuum cleaner bag. Lint, cat hair, a button. Maybe a guitar pick. Or a paper clip and a few Trident wrappers. No worries. Everything is fine in Arthur’s life, so no reason to complain. We adore Arthur.
Then, there is Howard. Howard is kind of………..well how can a mother put it nicely? Howard is a jerk. If cats went to school, Howard would’ve been the cat you beat up on the bus. Howard would be the guy running on his tiptoes with the pocket protector and a briefcase. Howard would be the class tattletale. Howard is the cat who makes up to us and then leaves a “present” for us at the base of the stairs or in front of the door. Howard will get on your chest, start purring and then sneeze on your glasses. He will eat something and then lick you on the mouth. If you are sorting the laundry, he will poop on your clothes. He is repulsive. He stopped grooming himself a year or 2 ago. He has too much going on during the day to be bothered. We adopted Howard when he was a tiny little kitten. He was so cute and so sweet. He was loved and adored. We sent out pictures of him on our Christmas cards. I stayed home with him. I read to him (OK, so I didn’t), but what on earth did we do to deserve Howard?? Despite his “disgustingness,” I am still his mom and I love him. Sorta.