Just wanted to help spread word about this event...



Come shop for locally produced goods by Mallory & Marzipan (a.k.a. neophobic), Lizerati, ScurvyDog Photography, and Lorigami without having to trudge through a mall.

So, Ruby (Pictures: 1, 2, 3) has extended her stay with us a bit. After bringing her home last week and discovering what a perfect dog she is, neither neophobic nor I had the heart to take her into a shelter, so she's been staying with us.

That said, Ruby still needs a home. Either a foster home or a permanent home will do. After getting to know her, I'd have to say she'd be a perfect first dog for someone. She's housebroken, loving, protective (without being aggressive), gets along with other dogs, and really is just a perfect dog. We think she's a ridgeback mix (neophobic says she's seen a ridge along her back when she's outside playing with Marzipan), and she just has a great temperament.

Anyway, if you know anyone who might be looking to add a furry body to their household, please let them know about Ruby. They're almost certain to love her.

So, a neighbor of ours has recently had two of his roommates move out on him, one of them leaving behind her dog, Ruby. He's in the process of moving out himself (he's not the one on the lease), and moving to an apartment where he can't bring Ruby. Rather than leave her abandoned in a house without food or power, and not wanting to take her to animal control where she's likely to be put down, he's asked us and some of our other neighbors for some help finding a home for Ruby.







Ruby is a sweet, 2-year old mutt that is intelligent and housetrained. She's protective of her people, but not aggressive. She's been somewhat trained (she can sit and shake) and is healthy, though she'll need a flea treatment ASAP.

She may have issues with cats (hence why neophobic and I can't take her in), but she just needs someone to take her for a few days at least while we try to find her longer-term arrangements.

Know anyone who can help?

UPDATE: Ruby's found a place either with the Atlanta Humane Society or Barking Hound Village. Now she just needs a permanent home. She's really a sweet dog.

So, Saturday's win against Virginia Tech at Bobby Dodd Stadium was the first time since 1962 that the Yellow Jackets defeated a top-5 ranked opponent at home. Pretty impressive stuff.

Though high on the preseason buzz (pun only partially intended), I have to admit that I've had some significant concerns about the team for most of the year. After Clemson and Miami, I wondered if opponents had figured out Paul Johnson's offense. Then, with later wins over Mississippi State and FSU, I wondered how far we could go with a defense that couldn't seem to stop anyone. But with the victory over VT last night, I think we've seen the power of this Ramblin' Wreck when it's firing on all cylinders.

I still have some lingering concerns about the defense, but we've got some true freshmen really stepping up to the plate when it matters, and I think we'll keep seeing improvement for the rest of the season. That said, I miss the John Tenuta defenses of the Chan Gailey era, and I think a Johnson offense combined with a Tenuta defense could put Tech into contention for a national title, but Tenuta's due for a head coaching gig, and I doubt we could pull him out of West Bend for another stint at DC.

With the remaining schedule, assuming we can avoid the typical loss to a vastly outmatched opponent, we should be able to go 11-1 for the season. I've watched too many GT-UGA games for me to take that game for granted, but I have to say it'll be a nice change to go into that game the favorite.

That said, I do have one lingering concern about the team under Paul Johnson's leadership. As we saw in the loss to LSU in the Peach Bowl (I refuse to call it by it's new name) last year, a well-prepared team who has a season's worth of film to watch can do a good job preparing for the triple option, and stifle Tech's offense. Whether this is just an isolated incident, or what we can expect any time a team has a month to prepare for a big game is anybody's guess, but until we see some bowl games against similarly ranked opponents fall into the W column, it's going to be a concern I have.

But...that's a concern for another time. For now, I'm just happy savoring the sweet taste of Hokie.

Yeah...not so awesome.

Turns out they only had enough money to pay me for a little over a month. There was a hope that they'd be able to bring in more work (and therefore more money) but that hasn't materialized. So, as of next Wednesday, I'm back to being unemployed.

This shit is getting old.

This has been one hell of a week (in a good way).

On Monday, I had a second interview for a job, which ended with a verbal job offer. Not bad for only being in the job market for about 2 and a half weeks. Tuesday was my birthday, with an excellent bacon-themed meal prepared by neophobic. Wednesday was my first day at the new job, and all the craziness that entails, followed by a Flaming Lips concert at Chastain. Thursday I went to see my parents to celebrate my birthday with them, and then last night was dinner and drinks (and dancing, among other things) at Taverna Plaka with quite a wide array of friends, followed by more drinks at the Highlander.

Thanks to everyone, especially my lovely wife, for making this the best birthday week in ages.

Just received this from the shelter director where neophobic and I volunteer:

Hello everyone,

We are desprate for financial help to do transports up North to save countless homeless unwanted dogs. So far, I was able to take 27 dogs in December, 64 in March and 57 in May. I'm hoping to take at least 40 on this trip (next weekend). All the expenses have been coming out of our own pocket and we just can't afford to keep on doing this. The adoption fees barely cover the basic vet expenses (shots, spay/neuters, dewormers, microchip, etc).

Many of the dogs going with us would not have been adopted or rescued here. They are the "typical" smaller/mid-size short hair dogs, Beagle mixes, Terrier mixes, Lab mixes, etc. Many of them are requiring additional medical care (deformed legs, seniors!, eye problems, even heartworms).

Please forward this to all your friends and family who love animals. We need their help. These poor dogs lives are in their hands. Please keep in mind that PayPal is available on our website(http://etowahvalleyhumane.org/) so donating has never been easier.

Thank you from bottom of my heart!

Sincerely,

Dorothy Wissler
Director
Etowah Valley Humane Society
Cartersville, GA

http://www.daily-tribune.com/index.cfm?event=news.view&id=8A34C492-19B9-E2E2-6712C126111B4A1F

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I spoke with Dorothy recently and she said that she and you had discussed an article for the upcoming EVHS trip to New York. She asked me to send you some information. She can also add to it, and she has some pictures. Dorothy will be traveling to Yonkers, New York from June 5 - 7 to do a large adoption weekend. This will be the third trip she's taken this year. Last trip, she was able to take 64 dogs from our shelter and find homes for them. This trip she is planning to take 40 dogs. There is such a huge demand for dogs in northern states because they have very strict spay and neuter laws, something that most southern states do not have (which results in the large number of euthanizations we see in our county and beyond). When Dorothy takes these trips, she is literally saving these dogs from death. That's not to say that euthanasia is not still occurring - it occurs in our county at an alarming rate. That is why these trips are so important. We want to let the people of Bartow County know about these trips, and make them aware that while they may not have the time or money to devote to adopting a pet from our shelter, they can save a life by sponsoring one of these dogs. For just $25, anyone can sponsor one of these dogs so that they can make the trip to New York. This will be the first time we have asked for sponsorships, but because these trips are costly and we would like to make more of them, we need help from the people of our county.

Thanks so much for your help with this...I have forwarded this to Dorothy too. Please call me if you have any questions, and you can put my number in the paper for donations (770.324.3775). Also, my email address is Jacey@etowahvalleyhumane.org.

Jacey Howren
Chair, EVHS Board of Directors
770.324.3775
jacey@etowahvalleyhumane.org
--
Bartow County's available pets:
www.etowahvalleyhumane.org/adoptionlistings.html

Please don't breed or buy when animals in
shelters die!

I just want to spread the word along...this is a real way to save animals' lives.

I got home around 6:30 last night. I had to stop by the old apartment to pick up a few things, then had the pleasure of sitting in traffic on the connector for a while. If there's one thing I don't like about our move, it's that it has made my evening commute pretty craptacular (at least, I think so, I haven't made the commute from work to home yet without stopping at the old apartment).

Anyway, when I get home, I walk in, and the house feels warm. Admittedly, I'm wearing a long-sleeve button-down shirt (had a meeting with a client earlier in the day) and I'm just tired, both of which will make me feel warm, but this feels a bit above and beyond that, especially given how mild temperatures were yesterday. So, I walk over to the thermostat, and despite being set for 70 °F, the thermostat is showing 74 °F. So, I mess around with the thermostat a bit, then play with some of the vents (cool air is blowing in, so things seem to be working), in the hopes that the temperature will drop over the course of the evening.

Fast forward to around 9:30 PM, and we're putting up curtains in our lounge. Thermostat still reads 74 °F, despite the outside temperature being in the 60's. At this point, it's obvious something is definitely wrong.

After a crappy night's sleep (I have a hard time sleeping well if I'm too warm), I wake up tired and groggy. As I'm taking a shower, it hits me. I finish my shower, get out, dry off, and head over to the fuse box. Yep...the breaker for the AC unit had tripped. I flip the switch and hear the AC unit start up just outside. Quite a relief. I really wasn't looking forward to paying to have someone come out and look at our AC unit less than a week after we moved into the house, and I would have felt like a complete dumbass to have someone come out, flip the breaker, and leave.

Anyway, the move-in continues to progress. With a little luck, we should have TV, internet, and a washer/dryer combo that will actually fit in our laundry closet by early next week. Keep your fingers crossed!

Closing on the house on Monday. Move-in date is Saturday, May 16th.

Then the real fun starts... :)

The house is ours! We went binding as of 10 AM.

Closing date set for May 11th.

BTW, how much geek cred do I gain for buying a house with "1337" for a street number?

I looked at my horoscope earlier this week...it said Friday would be my lucky day. And so it has been. We've been approved for our home loan.

Woohoo!

Offer going in as soon as we're able.

So...my nephew, Gabriel Martin, was born yesterday. Yep...he's gonna be called a groundhog for the rest of his life.

Today marks two years for neophobic and I. Happy anniversary, baby. Though if I had known we were getting married on the "Day the Music Died," I might have suggested a different day.

Had a great time at a friend's watching the super bowl. Just wish we'd gotten home a bit earlier. This week has really dragged.

In positive news, we have an appointment to move further along on the home ownership front tomorrow. Fingers crossed for that going well.

Time to blow this popsicle stand. See ya's tomorrow.

So, Rosie and Elsie are coming back to us today.

The woman who adopted them has decided that she doesn't have the time to dedicate to them that they need.

I appreciate her honesty. That's a hard thing to tell the people you adopted your animals from, and I'm happy that she had the courage to tell us and allow us to take them back.

So while I'm sad we're having to take them back, I'm glad they're not going to be in a home where they aren't getting the time and attention they need. And I've really missed them over the past few weeks, so it'll be nice to see them again.

That said, our apartment is becoming a zoo again. 5 cats and a dog is just too much for us to care for for any extended period of time. Here's hoping we can find them a permanent, loving home soon.

The annual MLK-Weekend camping trip was excellent. We went up into the mountains northwest of Dahlonega, and camped on a flat area near the top of one of the mountains, with an amazing vista of the surrounding area and valley below. There's no denying it was cold...it snowed all three days we were up there, and the wind coming out of the valley was bone-chilling at times, but it only made building a huge-ass fire all the more enjoyable.

Unfortunately, when I got home, I was greeted by a car that wouldn't start. I was supposed to be one of the drivers for the trip, but once we had my car loaded and ready to go, we couldn't get it to start, and it wouldn't jump either. Turns out, though, that the battery had given up the ghost (still had a charge, but couldn't send enough juice to the starter, even with jumper cables attached). I wish I could have figured that out on my own and saved the cost of a tow and all the other associated crap, but at least the car got me to work this morning.

Also...as of Saturday evening, Rosie and Elsie went to their new home. I'm really going to miss those two.

Watched the inauguration at work today. Was cool to see just how many people braved the cold to be a part of it. I just hope our new President can exceed the expectations of his detractors, and live up to as many expectations of his supporters as is reasonably possible.

So...one big thing that I (somewhat intentionally) neglected to mention in my last update is that neophobic and I are strongly considering buying a house. With our lease expiring in mid-February, and housing prices what they are, we were hesitant to spend another year in a place we didn't own, but didn't know how doable it would be for us to buy a house. Well...it appears that question has been (mostly) answered.

First, we explained our situation to our apartment's leasing office, and while I have a decent number of complaints about living where I do, the staff there is not one of them. The people are great, especially the maintenance staff. Anyway, they ended up offering us a 1-year lease that we could cancel at any time with 60 days notice, and there would be no cancellation fee. On top of that, the rate is $150 less per month than what we're currently paying. So...we're set with housing until we can close on a house.

Then, there's the issue of buying.

I thought it would be years until we could afford to buy a house. We don't have much savings (largely a result of paying too much rent combined with neophobic being underpaid at her previous job), and our (okay...my) credit is far from perfect. It's not -bad-, but it's not great. A friend who, until recently, sold mortgages suggested that we check out NACA. After checking out their website, it seemed a bit too good to be true. Below-prime 30-year fixed mortgage with no closing costs or down payment required. Further, there's no PMI (though there's a $50/month fee you have to pay by getting your mortgage through this group). So...neophobic and I decided to go to one of their workshops. This is the first step to securing a mortgage through the organization. The problem is, all the English-speaking ones in Atlanta were booked until March. So, we signed up for a workshop in Birmingham this past Saturday at 10 AM.

Now...getting to Birmingham by 10 AM isn't too bad. That's 11 AM here, and it's about a 150 minute drive. However, when you're out at a game until 6 AM the night before, and have to get up at 7 AM to get ready to drive out to Birmingham, that's a little more problematic.

Still...we made it there with time to spare (though the parking situation at the Birmingham Public Library leaves a lot to be desired), sat through the 4-hour workshop, and made it home by 5:30 PM, after which I promptly collapsed into bed. However, after attending the workshop, I feel very confident about our ability to get a damn good loan and move into a house of our own in the fairly near term.

In other news, we adopted a new dog on Sunday. If you've followed neophobic's journal, she's had her eyes on this dog (Bandit) since this past summer, but when the dog was adopted, we just wrote it off. Well, neophobic went to help with adoptions at PETCO a few weeks back, and when she saw the dogs who were brought there for adoption, there was Bandit sitting in one of the cages.


(Not the best picture of her, but I'm sure there will be more available on neophobic's journal soon)

We initially planned on waiting to get all the foster kittens adopted before bringing Bandit (now Marzipan) home, but her time at the shelter wasn't doing her any favors. She was unhealthy and unhappy, and neophobic finally convinced me to bring her home on Sunday. I won't say it's been easy dealing with all the animals, but I suspect it will get much easier as they all acclimate to each other, and once the kittens are adopted.

(On that note, does anyone know someone who might want to adopt 2 ADORABLE kittens?)

Finally...the new iMac should be here today. I'm struggling to come up with a name for it, particularly since I don't know if we're going to stick with my Simpsons naming scheme or not. I guess I still have a few hours to decide before we power it up and have to decide on something.

It's funny how I decide to make a post, and have all these things in my mind to post about, but then immediately upon clicking "Post an Entry," they evaporate from my head.

Interesting times this new year. Some good, some bad, but interesting nonetheless.

neophobic and I are getting a new computer at home. She fell in love with her iMac at her previous job, and considering that our current desktop can rarely go a day or two without needing to be rebooted (or rebooting itself), time has come for a new computer, an iMac. We've found a pretty good deal at MacMall, but if anyone has any tips on saving cash on a new mac, I'd appreciate the advice.

One (of the three) foster kittens (Cookie) found a home on Christmas Eve, leaving us with two more adorable 9-week-old kittens. Check neophobic's journal for pictures if you're interested, or know someone who might be. We want them to go to a home together, though. They're kinda attached (from the same litter, I'm told) and besides, kittens kinda need playmates to keep themselves (and their parents) sane.

Once the kittens find a home, we're planning on adopting a dog. neophobic fell in love with a mutt at the shelter back in the summer, but the dog was adopted. However, during a recent adoption day at PETCO, the same dog was brought to be adopted out. Apparently the previous owner had returned the dog since she was a bit too active for their other, older dog.

I have the annual MLK-Weekend camping trip coming up soon. Some friends and I have been going camping in January for the past several years. Eventually it settled on MLK weekend since one friend, who's a teacher, automatically gets that day off every year. It was a bit chilly last year. Okay...so it snowed. But it's always a great time to get away and enjoy the great outdoors. And gluttony. We're getting 2 pony kegs of beer this year, to go along with the deep-fried turkey and other assorted tasty treats.

Work has actually been better lately. I've been doing some database programming/configuration for a client that most people in the Atlanta-area have probably heard of (and likely some have done business with). It's nice to work with high-profile clients like that, and the people I'm working with are much better than my normal boss. There's even a chance I may switch to work with them on a permanent basis. Here's hoping...

Via vertamae

Delilah



Daisy



Gremlin



Rosie



Elwood



Cookie



There's a...0.02% chance that none of my cats are plotting to kill me (and a not-insignificant 17% chance that they all are). But half of 'em are only about 5 weeks old, so I think I can take 'em.

The past couple weeks have been a whirlwind. Frankly, I'm exhausted, but I can't get to sleep early enough to do anything about it. That said, I'd rather be busy than bored. So...a recap of the more important things.

Animals

(apologies to anyone who's read most of this in neophobic's LJ)

Last week, neophobic, ldysteph, and I (as well as Shanna and Dave, but they don't have LJ accounts, so they aren't cool enough to get links) went to a volunteer meeting for the shelter. I learned a few things about doing adoptions, but given that the meeting pretty much took up the entire night, it would have been nice to get more accomplished. Not that I should complain, though. The meeting was at Mellow Mushroom, and both food and drink were quite enjoyable.

While we were at the meeting, Carrie, one of the shelter's board members, mentioned that someone had just abandoned 4 tiny kittens at the shelter the previous day. She said that they were too young to be apart from their mother (3-4 weeks), and that Dorothy, the shelter director, had chased down the people who had abandoned them (running stop-signs and red lights to do so), wrote down their tag number, and filed a complaint with the police for animal abandonment and animal cruelty. Carrie said that the kittens needed a foster home, and suckers that we are, neophobic and I agreed to foster the kittens.

I met Kristina (another volunteer) the next day to get the kittens. Unfortunately, one had already died, so it was down to three. They looked so pitiful. Look!. We named the three kittens Cookie (the one reaching towards the camera), Cupcake, and Moonpie (the orange one). They were a bit sick, and Moonpie especially wasn't all that active, and barely ate.

By Thursday, all the kittens were eating solid food mixed with kitten formula, and looking better, but Friday both Cupcake and Moonpie took a turn for the worse. They hardly moved and barely ate. neophobic and I made the decision to stay home from Halloween festivities to look after the babies (apologies to wilsonodk and ldysteph for that...we really wanted to go). neophobic and I took turns getting up every couple of hours through the night to check on the kittens, but come morning, Cupcake was gone, and Moonpie followed shortly thereafter.

It made for a rough morning. Taking these animals into your care, and failing in the end, it's hard not to blame yourself, even when you realize they had the deck stacked pretty heavily against them.

We were scheduled to help with adoptions at Petco that day, and it turned out to be a good diversion. It was a beautiful day out, and nice to be out there with the dogs. One dog got away from me while I was taking it out of its cage and I sprinted after it. Eventually it came back to us, but two people later commented on how quickly I went after the dog. It's not often that I get compliments on my speed, so that was nice to hear.

By the time we had closed up, only one dog had been adopted, but while we were putting the dogs in the van to go back to the shelter, an older woman came by and expressed an interest in a Bridgett, a border collie. She said she'd be back the next day with her husband. However, it looks like she wasn't adopted. :(

Cookie has improved since losing his brother and sister. He's a mischievous ball of fur, but cute as hell. Here's a pic:



However, we quickly realized he was getting lonely, and how important for his development it was that he have a playmate. So we called Dorothy at the shelter and asked her to look for an orphan kitten about the same age at animal control that we could foster to give Cookie a playmate. Of course, as we predicted, Dorothy didn't just get one, but two kittens (we were thankful it wasn't more than that). I picked up those kittens last night, so allow me to introduce Rosie:



and Elwood:



Rosie is a sassy little girl (and given my hatred of the word "sassy," the fact that I still use it should tell you how well it fits). She can be a bit vocal, and when she wants to get your attention, she can meow pretty loudly. She's also a little purr-box when she's happy, as she was while I was holding her when that picture was taken. The cutest thing she does, though, is that she has a tendency to make growly noises while she's eating. It's one of the cutest things I've ever seen.

Elwood is a cuddly little guy and mews at just about everything. It's almost like he's talking. He's also a bit of a wimp, as he whines any time Cookie is a bit rough with him. Still, he's an adorable little guy, and quite the lover.

So...that's what's going on in animal-world. We're planning on holding onto the kittens until after they've been fixed, so if anyone is interested in a kitten around new-years (that's when I'm guessing they'll be old enough to be fixed) we've got three cute ones which would love a new home.

Election

Until Tuesday night, I had been nervous for weeks. It looked like Obama had sealed the deal, but after the disappointment of 2004, I wasn't going to take anything for granted.

Last Sunday (the 2nd) I went out and volunteered for Obama, canvassing apartments/condos near Five Points. With me was Matt, a guy from New York who had been in Atlanta for a few years. He was dressed in dark pants, a white button-up shirt and a black suit coat, with tattoos, piercings, and bleached hair that looked like he'd stuck his finger in an electrical outlet. All-in-all, a pretty interesting guy.

All of the buildings we canvassed were access controlled, most with security personnel as well. One security guy stopped us from going into his building, but was still very helpful in letting us know which residents on our list were still living in the building. At another building, while we were walking out, a resident who was fairly rude to us when we knocked on her door met us in the lobby and told us security was looking for us.

By the time my shift was over, we hadn't talked to that many people, but we knocked on a lot of doors. I went home feeling like I'd done a good thing.

This is the first presidential election that I have:

• Volunteered for a candidate.
  
• Donated to a candidate.
  
• Read a candidate's book.
  
• Voted for the winner of the election.

It felt really good to be a part of this campaign, especially from the beginning. Realizing that I had been supporting Obama since before most people even knew his name, it was nice to see this all come to fruition. It's hard to believe that a year ago, everyone was saying Hillary was going to be our next President, and to see history happen right before your eyes.

I spent election night at a friend's house. Jim, a coworker, was throwing an election-night party, and I had the opportunity to meet some really interesting people. We drank, we ate, we talked politics. I ended up getting home sometime after midnight, after watching both McCain's concession speech and Obama's victory speech.

I know Obama can't live up to all the expectations everyone has of him. But I think he will be an intelligent and reasonable leader, and while I don't agree with all of his policy, I think he will be among the best Presidents for over a century. I just hope I'm right.

Other Stuff

It's neophobic's birthday this Saturday, and plans are still a bit up in the air. She's also getting her wisdom teeth pulled next week (oddly enough, coinciding with the release of Wrath of the Lich King), so the upcoming week looks pretty full. Additionally, she's in the market for a new job, and is pretty flexible on what that should be, so if anyone is still reading at this point and knows of any entry-level job openings, please let me or her know.

Like I said at the beginning of this post, I'm exhausted. But...I don't know that I'd change a thing if I could. Sometimes, that just the way life is, and you just hold on for the ride. This is definitely one of those times.

I just received this from the director of the shelter where neophobic and I volunteer.  This is important enough that it warrants sharing.

Got rear-ended on the way into work this morning.

I was on the off-ramp from I-75, turning right onto Chastain Rd. There was too much traffic for me to make the right-turn on red, so I had to stop. I looked in the rear-view and saw that the car behind me was coming up a bit quickly, so I inched forward a bit to give her a bit more room to brake. I thought it was fine, but moments later there was the distinct "thunk" as my car lurched forward.

We pulled over into the parking lot of the Cracker Barrel around the corner. Neither car appeared to have any damage, but I have her insurance info, and will probably be taking my car to get checked out to make sure there isn't any damage I can't see.

Not an auspicious start to the weekend...