Firebringer the Shapeshifting Unicorn

A Home With A Good Heart

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:29:47 GMT

Kiefer told me something kinda heartwarming the other day!

Gaspar (now Sylvester; see icon), the male black kitten from the litter we fostered this year, went home with one of Kiefer's co-workers. The same co-worker also sent a note out to the team just the other day, encouraging people to make sure they participated in the giving tree campaigns currently going on in the workplace. He sounded very passionate about getting people involved.

Good to know the little kitten has such a caring family! <3

WoW Geekery - Characters' Letters to Santa

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 18:47:44 GMT

On IM today, I chatted with my WoW-addicted co-worker about an upcoming raid. On a whim, I wrote up a quick wishlist my main (Quaternia, a Beast Mastery hunter) would write to Santa. My co-worker replied (his is the funniest), I shared both with Kiefer, and he added his own.

Dear Santa,

I have been a good huntard this year. I always feed my pet lots of fishies, and my DPS has gotten better all year. For Christmas, I would like a kick-a$$ helm with lots of crit.

Love,

Quat

Dear Santa,

I've been a good Drood healzorz all year, i've only let huntards / dps die when they really really deserved it, and i've only called 3 main tanks douche-tards (pugs, and they really really deserved it too). All i want for christmas is for Blizzard to stop FUCKING with my HoTs and essentially crippling me until i get all new gear to make up for their evil mean-nesss.

XOXO,

Mathais.

PS: It would also be hillarious if you gave Quat a lump of coal for Christmas.

Dear Santa,

This year, I was really really good. I learned Survival and killed all the bosses in Naxxramas three times. Aren't you proud of me? So for Christmas, I'd like a new gun and some new boots and a new trinket to boost my stats so I can start killing the bosses in Ulduar. Also, please give Herkales the Hallowed Helm so he can get his Achievement. Thank you.

-- Harvan

What would YOUR WoW, D&D, or other RPG/MMO character write to Santa this year? =D

Inner Peace

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 02:49:41 GMT

Words of wisdom from my father today.

I thought you might like to know..........

Some doctor on television this morning said that the way to achieve Inner
Peace is to finish all the things you have started.

So, I looked around my house to see things I'd started and hadn't finished
and, before leaving the house this morning, I finished off a bottle of
Merlot, a bottle of shhhardonay, a bodle of Baileys, a butle of vocka, a
pockage of Prunglies, tha mainder of bot Prozic and Valum scriptins, the res
of the Chesescke an a box a chocolets.

Yu haf no idr who gud I fel.
Peas sen dis orn to dem yu fee AR in ned ov inr pece.

I Have Discovered That I Really Like...

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 02:17:32 GMT

...Latvian Mittens.

After +favoriting about a dozen of them on my favorite knitting website, I think I've decided I need to get a big book of them. I really love the symmetrical patterns and colorwork!

My favorites tend to be the black and white (or cream and black, or off-white and gray, etc.) and red and white. They're folksy, colorful, and bold without being too in-your-face.

I totally know what's going on my Xmas list. =D

Window Fix!

Sun, 08 Nov 2009 22:10:06 GMT

Woot, my dad saved me $100 last night!

The windows on my car have been rolling up super slowly lately. The passenger-side window was the worst, and it rolled at such a creeping, halting pace I was worried it was soon going to get stuck. I figured we'd have to take the door apart and check the motor, so I'd asked my father and brother if they'd give me a hand when they came over yesterday.

My dad did a little research before coming over, and found a suggestion from one Insight owner to use a silicon grease on the window - which wouldn't eat the rubber seal like a petroleum based product would. Happily, my handyman father already had a silicon grease (in fact, the exact brand suggested), and he brought it over along with a little brush to apply.

We cleaned the window channels and applied the grease, and it helped immensely! Another application in a few weeks would probably be great, but there's already a TREMENDOUS improvement.

Since the car dealer said it'd be $100 just to take a look at it, I'm estatic. Yay for cheap fixes, and fathers with well-stocked garages! =D

Conversations from the Drive Home

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:08:03 GMT

Kiefer and I tend to get into deep, weird, in-depth discussions of odd stuff whenever we drive home from a social outing. Tonight's went something along these lines:

Fire: ...You know, they used to run experiments to try and prove the physical existance of a soul. They'd measure someone just as they died, to see whether they got any lighter when the soul left the body.

Kiefer: If anything, I'd think someone would get heavier.

Fire: What, because your spiritual lightness is leaving, or something?

Kiefer: I dunno, maybe souls are filled with helium.

Fire: Hah!
...You know...Souls of Helium would make a great rock band name!

Kittens Vs. Knitting

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 05:20:49 GMT

All the cats are somewhat interested in my yarn, but Schala is by far the most attracted to it.

While I was working on a hat yesterday, she started stalking and batting at my project. I shooed her away repeatedly.

After the six thousanth scolding, she bided her time, and waited until I was engaged in talking to Kiefer. Seeing her opening, she darted in - and rather than just batting at the dangling yarn, she grabbed the entire ball and dashed off proudly, the ball (which was half her size and still attached to my project) dangling from her mouth and slowly unwinding behind her as she pranced across the living room with her tail in the air.

I was laughing too hard to grab her, but Kiefer managed to snatch her up and returned the yarn to me.

You've never seen a kitten so pleased with herself.

Knitting Pics

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 05:35:23 GMT

I've posted very few pics of my knitting adventures. Here's a few of the latest things!

	Hat Selection An assortment of hats I've knit over the year. A couple of these still need their ends woven in, but that's about it. Most of these are destined for donations to the local homeless shelter; if you do see one you love, lemme know; I'd be happy to mail it to you. =D
	Lace Shawl 1 My first lace project...and my first shawl! Made of a sturdy but lightweight cotton/linen blend yarn, this shawl drapes nicely. It's a simple feather-and-fan, 3-row repeat.
	Lace Shawl 2 Closeup of the pattern. Now that I'm done with it and have worn it around a little, I find that I'd actually prefer it to be a bit longer. Oh well, now I know for next time!
	Plush Donkey 1 My very first plush toy! He's VERY soft and squish-able. He needs a name....Dalton the Donkey?
	Plush Donkey 2 ...Darwin the Donkey?

Wow Halloween Part II

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 05:19:51 GMT

Bobbing For Warpys
My WoW pet (a warp stalker named Warpish; board gamer geeks will get the reference) decided to take a dunk in the bobbing-for-apples barrel.

Scribblenauts!

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:34:09 GMT

A recent XKCD comic on the new Nintendo DS game Scribblenauts got me curious, so I checked out the site. Man, talk about a creative game!

I picked it up last night and played a little of it with Kiefer over the delicious sushi dinner he took me out for (all-you-can-eat GOOD sushi, edamame included, in our hometown = SO AWESOME). It's an absolute blast, and Kiefer was begging me for turns on the game by the time we got home. I think we may have to cave in and get two copies (if Kiefer's not already at the game store this morning).

The premise of the game is simple: Get the star. Much like Crayon Physics, it's a simple puzzle game you solve one level at a time. You simply get from point A to point B, or accomplish some small task...but how you do so is so flexible that it feels pretty much unlimited. In addition to running back and forth on the screen and picking things up, you can open a notepad and type in virtually any noun - and it will appear.

Take one of the first levels: You're on a screen with a man in the desert. The goal of this level? "Refresh him". So on various tries, we inserted:

*A pool
*A bottle of water
*An ice cream parlor (this did appear, but we couldn't get the guy to walk into it)
*An ice cream cone (that worked)
*A thunderstorm

The last one, which was Kiefer's idea, gets my vote for the coolest one. In the game, all items in the sky (the sun, clouds, etc.) are held up by string as though on the set of a play, so the thunderstorm was lowered down on strings into the scene. It dripped water and then started raining in earnest, and the level completion message appeared - just as bolts of lightning started coming, and fried the nevertheless-refreshed-and-happy man.

As the XKCD comic points out, the range of things you can insert is pretty incredible. I've had everything from a jet-pack to catnip to a helicoptor (which I dropped on my character's head and killed him with, oops XD).

The interaction between objects can be wonderful, too. In a level featuring a policeman, Kiefer inserted a "criminal" - and the policeman ran off and caught him. Giving a bag of "sugar" to a baker who was standing beside a doctor made the doctor yank the unhealthy stuff out of the baker's hands.

It's cute, it's creative, it's way easy to pick up for just a few minutes at a time, and at $30 you really have no excuse for not buying it. GO NOW. =D

Sunrise

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 23:36:34 GMT

Another picture post!

One advantage to being home sick: you can take time to enjoy the sunrise. There was a thin mist around today, and it sent some lovely beams of light through the trees. I grabbed the camera and snapped a few shots while the cats ate breakfast.
And yes, today's kitten pic is at the end. Really, did you expect any less? =3

	September Dawn The sun was just rising over the hill behind our house (the same wooded hill where we found the kittens)
	Spiderwebs in the Mist If you look closely, you can see all kinds of strands from other spiderwebs. I didn't realize how many were out there!
	Sunrise Spiderweb Taking advantage of my camera's zoom, I got a close up shot of this one quite some distance up in a tree.
	September Morning Garden The garden may be winding down for the year, but we're still getting tomatoes, squash, and beans out of it on a regular basis. Yum!
	Boneless Nap Pretty little Schala snuggled into the down comforter for a nap.

Long Beach Photos

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:38:32 GMT

Kiefer and I spent Labor Day weekend with a bunch of friends down in Long Beach, celebrating megami and tunglashr's joint birthdays.
It was kinda stormy for much of the weekend, but that didn't stop me from whipping out the camera.

	Beach Dunes Is that..maybe...just a sliver of blue sky?
	Beach Path The end of the short trail from the rental house to the beach.
	Driftwood Washed up after the first night's storm.
	Gray Day The cold and windy weather didn't stop many people from wandering along the surfline.
	Crab Pot Whoever designed the menu of the place we went to eat on Saturday sure loves their quotes. We were laughing over "grilled", "wild", and "crusty" items for the rest of the trip...
	Crab Pot ...Not to mention "1" refill.
	Nobody Home There were so many crab shells up and down the beach! I had no idea crabs were so plentiful off the WA coast, but apparently there's tons of them out there. ...Or there WERE tons, anyway.
	Ocean Waves Muddy waves as another storm approached.
	Seagull Snack 1 He had to fight hard and constantly to keep a hold of that beaten-up mussel.
	Seagull Snack 2 I love the gull caught mid-laugh in the background.
	Shell Of Your Former Self I wonder if the holes at the top of the shell are a sign of a particular predator having gotten this guy?
	Kitten Hugs You knew there'd be a kitten pic in here. Schala and Spekkio piled on top of each other in the cat tree, and I finally got their attention for a photo.

New Favorite Taste Sensation: Coffee Jelly!

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 18:07:21 GMT

I saw a 3-pack of little cups at Uwajimaya labled "Coffee Jelly". I do love me some coffee, so I nabbed them and decided to give them a try.

I cracked one open at work today, and tried a bite. Wow, not bad at ALL - it's like Jell-o made with some really good coffee. The cups were packaged with tiny little coffee creamers, so I drizzled the contents over the jelly.

WOAH.

We're talking a serious case of delicious here.

The cream blended perfectly with the slightly bitter jelly, and the result was fabulous and far more sophisticated in taste than you'd expect from something in a plastic cup.

I think I'd classify the overall flavor as "tiramisu-like". If you're a fan of coffee or that most fabulous of Italian desserts, you've GOT to try this stuff!!

Once You See The Connection, You Can't Stop

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 20:16:53 GMT

The title of this MSDN article I'm reading

makes me think of

the theme to this '80s cartoon.

Great. Now I've got it stuck in my head.

Kitten Snuggles

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 05:22:47 GMT

Nick And Spekkio Napping
Spekkio had originally curled up against Trevor in the same spot, right next to the warm fireplace. Trevor finally got up and left, and Nick decided that warm spot was too good to pass up. He curled up there and licked Spekkio's head, paws, and ears until they both fell asleep.

Boy, I Sure Don't Get Invited To These Kinds Of Parties...

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:17:14 GMT

A recent Seattle Times article offers tips on throwing a festive party on a tight budget

Among the tips - and no, I'm not kidding:

Purchase your organic party produce directly from the farmer

Forego the lobster, and offer spiffier appetizers to make up for the loss

Serve sparkling wine instead of champagne

Wow, I'll sure be saving money on my next shindig with THESE tips! o.O

Kitten Pics For New Families

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:13:48 GMT

Pictures taken for Glenn and Gaspar's new families!

	What? Glenn looks shocked and confused!
	Glenn Playing There's a toy right above his head.
	Glenn And Spekkio Playing Tiny kitten toes! <3
	Nick And Glenn Glenn is really not so sure about this whole big-kitty-thing... This gives you a good idea of the size difference between medium-sized Nicholas and the little kittens.
	Handsome Gaspar How suave does he look? =D
	Gaspar Kills a Shoe He was in on it with several other kittens, and between them, they managed to untie my sneakers on their own.
	Gaspar Shoes Li'l Ewok-Head may have grown a lot, but he's still tiny when compared to my footwear.

New Kitten Photos!

Sat, 09 May 2009 06:31:45 GMT

	Baby Glenn He really is as old as the rest, but in moments like this, you'd swear he was just a newborn. What a sweet baby face! <3
	Bap! Schala ready to bap Spekkio on the head
	Don't Let Your Guard Down Be careful even if you're just pausing to scratch an itch - there's a mighty Schala-hunter around!
	In Daddy's Hands Glenn, resting briefly in Kiefer's hands. <3
	Buh? Gaspar looking rather surprised!
	Tiny Toes The kittens are sitll young enough that they curl up in a droopy ball when scruffed...And stick their tiny little toes up. Here's Gaspar showing his little pink toepads.
	Spekkio Face I doubt his eyes will stay blue when he grows up, but for now, they sure are striking! And that perfect white stripe suits him so well.
	Stalkers Spekkio and Schala getting ready to wrestle
	Sweet Schala Look at those eyes - I think they're starting to change color! The blue is going away, and it looks like some pretty green is taking its place. She's going to be beautiful!

Meet the Kittens!

Sat, 02 May 2009 20:56:55 GMT

We're on day four now, and doing well! The kittens all gained weight between yesterday and today, so we've just got to keep that up. We're almost out of the perscription diet the vet gave us, so we picked up some kitten food at the store today. We're still mixing it with formula, but should soon be able to move to canned entirely.
The little things are hitting a lot of milestones, too - getting more coordinated, starting to do big-cat things like grooming themselves (ineffectively, but they try), and even (WOOT) using the litterbox! We still have to intervene for now and they don't always get the box, but they're learning. =)

So, wanna meet the family?

	Black Boy One of the first two rescued, this is the explorer of the lot. He's been the most independent, OK with being handled but much prefering to climb over everything and check out the big wide world.
	Gray Boy This fellow came from the second round of rescuing. He's the mellow one, and probably the snuggliest. He's been the first to truly seek out petting, and prefers curling up and getting petted to rough-and-tumble with his siblings. Somewhat to our surprise, he's also the biggest right now. He seems to have some personality traits in common with our Calcifer.
	The Girl She's god an odd expression in this pic. ;) While she's not quite as adventuresome as her dark brother, she's still a pretty outgoing girl. She's the most developed of the kittens, with ears pretty well fully opened. In body type and personality, she's a bit like Trevor. She'll probably be a beautiful and sleek kitty when she grows up!
	The Runt Excuse the dirty face in the pic! The baby of the bunch, our little runt is the most roly-poly of them all. He's kind of the peacemaker in the lot, and seems to have a lot in common with Nicholas' "play with me!" personality.

It's getting a little old to refer to "the gray male", "the girl", etc., so we're considering names. Chances are that whoever gets adopted out will have their name changed, but that's OK!
I've been bouncing themed names back and forth with Kiefer today, and we're tending towards some of the following:

Coffee names (black male, big gray, female, gray runt):
Macchiato, Venti, Via or Latte, and Breve

Chrono Trigger:
Gaspar, Spekkio or Cyrus, Schala, Glenn

Final Fantasy 4:
Kain, Edward, Rydia, Edge

Also tossing around drink names (Squirt, Sprite, Tab/itha, etc.), explorers and philosophers (Magellan, Aristotle, Socrates, Newton, etc.), and more. Right now, I think we've been leaning towards the Chrono names, but we'll see. Got any suggestions?

OMGKITTENS!!!!!!!!!11!!!11ONE11!!!!

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 05:44:38 GMT

This was NOT how I intended to spend my evening...!

I worked late tonight and stopped by the store on the way home. It was just before dark when I walked in to see Kiefer climbing in the bushes behind the hot tub out back. He was waving to get my attention, and told me he'd heard a kitten back there while BBQing dinner.

I dropped everything, patted the three resident felines, and rushed outside. I managed to crawl further into the brush, and heard the mews, too. As I got closer, the kittens broke from their hiding place and rushed over to me. They actually covered quite a bit of distance. I scooped one up, and the second kept running towards me, so I grabbed it as well.

I handed them each to Kiefer, who was back down the hill, and stepped forward to check out a dark shadow there. When the shadow opened yellow eyes and hissed at me, I realized it was an adult cat. I assume it was probably the mother, although I couldn't tell you for sure. Kiefer and I agnoized over what to do - try to give the kittens back? Kiefer finally decided we'd take the little ones into the warmth, and call a vet to ask for advice.

So, we did. I sat downstairs with the little things on my lap while he called an emergency vet. The vet said that the mother (if that WAS the mom) might not take them back, so we were probably best off caring for them ourselves. After getting some into, Kiefer took off for the local Petco which was about to close (ever heard a Prius peel rubber?), and returned with formula, bottles, and a tiny litterbox.

We've gotten them to eat a little bit, snuggled them, and turned up the heat in my room (where Pozie's kept; there's lots of supplemental heat sources and it's the warmest place int he house). Both of the kittens are now curled up together on a spare blanket in a high-sided box.

I don't know whether we did the right thing - I hate to think we might have taken them from their mother. But I console myself with a few logical considerations. First, being raised in the wild, they'd likely end up feral - and probably breed more kittens of their own someday, if they lived long enough. Second, well, that's a BIG 'if'. While I was sitting downstairs with them in my lap, I was startled by a scraping on glass. I looked up to see a large raccoon standing on his hind legs and pawing at the sliding glass door. If that 'coon found these tiny things, well, I'm not sure it would be a pretty sight. And then there's the coyotes we hear calling out there many nights...

As best as we can tell right now, they're somewhere between 1-3 weeks of age. We'll take them to our vet first thing in the morning, and Kiefer thinks his work will be OK with him working from home tomorrow. After that, we'll likely have to stagger our day schedules to make sure we're here as much as possible for the little ones.

I don't know whether we'll keep them, but the possibility is there. At the least, we'll be prepared to care for them until a foster home is found.

I think the chances are that we'll do our best to raise them ourselves, tho. I mean...How can you resist KITTENS?? Look at them!! =D =D =D

	Kittens To Scale That's my hand. My hands aren't all that big - the kitten is just that small!
	Kittens in a Blanket Sleepy kitten faces!!

Happy Workniversary!

Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:53:44 GMT

Today is kieferskunk's 5th anniversary at his job!
Happy workniversary, my love! =D

Kiefer's Home!

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 03:07:15 GMT

There was a really lengthy delay in getting Kiefer's surgery started, because his surgeon was needed for a critical ER case, but other than a lot of waiting, everything went superbly well!

We finally got home at a quarter to 7 (had left for the hospital just before 9 in the morning) - much later than we expected, but it worked out in the end.

Kiefer's doing incredibly well! He was even coherent enough to call family on the way home, and he's now happily settled in playing WoW. Hasn't complained of any pain so far, and wasn't even very groggy from the sedation. He's cracking a few bad puns, too, so you know he's just fine. XD

Glad it's all over with! Another 5-7 years until this routine again.

Oh, and they did give us the old pacer! It's cool to look at, and much tinier and more rounded than I'd expected. =D

Closet Pics!

Sat, 11 Apr 2009 03:32:07 GMT

We finished the closet remodel last night! Since I can't WoW, I decided to upload pics instead. XD

	Can't resist those eyes... I know, I promised closet pictures. Well, here's Trevor checking out the freshly completed work! ...He's IN the closet, so it counts!! ...What?
	Closet - Left Left side of the closet, with the shorter shelf and shoe rack. And Nicholas.
	Closet- Right Right side of the closet, again with Nicholas continuing to model. Whacha think of the wall color? We were going for something warm and sunshiney, to help us wake up in the morning. XD
	Mraow? Trevor talks about the new closet. We laid a blanket for him on top of the new shelves. So nice to know his little paws are safe up there now!

At long last - the one function no piece of software has provided in all these years...

Thu, 26 Mar 2009 22:54:54 GMT

...Until NOW!

Yes, PLEASE!

...You can't make this stuff up.

Wed, 28 Jan 2009 17:40:08 GMT

Former Frensh president Chirac hospitalized after being mauled by his own, clinically depressed poodle

...I have no words. XD