Argh, it's the dreaded "kitten season" (cats that have not been spayed or neutered are breeding right now) and on top of that, Brunswick suddenly seems inundated with stray homeless cats. Everyone I know has taken in as many rescues as they can, myself included. I just don't know what to do about this. My neighbors and I speculate that perhaps there are more strays on the streets now because of the spate of home foreclosures and people having to move due to finances.
Anyway, the latest stray on Brunswick Street has been nicknamed "Smoky" by the neighbors. He is 100% gray and male, and by appearances it looks like he has NOT been neutered yet. Smoky is very loving and friendly so obviously he used to have a home. Are you missing a lovable gray male cat? If yes, send a message to annamatt at g mail dot com and I will try to locate Smoky for you--he is roaming outside near the post office. Smoky likes to lie in the middle of the road, and he is the same color as the road, so all of us are scared he might get hit by a car soon. We affixed a reflective collar onto him in the hopes it will save him. If you are Smoky's owner, please claim him quickly! There is another urgent matter: he has a golf-ball sized mass in his belly that might be a tumor, and it will need medical attention soon, no matter what it is. Smoky needs your help immediately.
If we can't find Smoky's owners soon, we're going to start looking for someone to adopt him.
My take on Rev.Wright-
His demeanor yesterday seemed full of ego and narcissism,anger and an element of bigotry. I think Wright is angry that Obama distanced himself from his inflammatory rhetoric and his ego can't let him let it go long enough for Obama to recover from the initial damage. I think part of what Wright did was intentionally designed to hurt Obama because of his "betrayal". His desire to elevate the status of African Americans isn't as strong as his need to defend himself. He'd rather throw Obama "under the bus" then to keep quiet and help Obama win. (Mika was right on Morning Joe when she said he seemed to relish the attention on himself.)
I listened to his entire speech yesterday and found the content to be interesting and mostly valid. He's a very good speaker. But I've been in enough black churches to know that while Wright's style is typical, his message is not. I have absolutely no doubt that this will do lasting and even permanent (hopefully not fatal) damage to Obama's campaign.
Wright's words painted Obama as the type of politician he's trying not to be when he said that Obama had reacted as he did because that's the way politicians act. He didn't refer to Obama as a friend but nothing more than an opportunist. He said he'd "go after Obama" if he wins the Presidency because he'd then be part of the group that keeps black people down.
Clinton and McCain will use every bit of this to paint Obama into a corner and force him to continue to defend Wright, keeping him off his message of hope and unity. He'll be damaged in the eyes of people who were undecided or even hesitant to vote for an African American.
I've wavered on how I feel about Rev.Wright and had gotten to the point where I thought I could understand why he preached his message. Something in my gut, that I ignored, was telling me that Wright was the type of preacher whose sermons were often more about getting attention than in saving souls, I think now that I should have followed my first instinct.
I don't for one minute hold Obama responsible for this, with the exception that he denied ever hearing Wright's anti-American and outrageous sermons. All of Chicago knew Wright for what he was. You can't be in a church for 20 years with a pastor well known for his controversial Afro-centric views and not know what his sermons contain. I 'm not saying Obama agreed with what Wright said, nor am I suggesting that he should have left the church. I am saying that Obama should have been truthful in his response when asked about his pastor and he could have reduced this damage. Now he's caught up in the spin that he can't get away from.
Some pretty wild weather here the past week or so. Spring arrived with a fury - after a couple of gorgeous 70 degree days,the rains came and we had almost 5inches. Downtown Manchester flooded and a few streets were closed. My neighborhood has had to deal with water seepage into basements and the sump pumps can't keep up. We use the shop vac every night and probably will have to continue for the rest of the week.
On theup side - my plants are coming up!!!
Last night we had one of those rain storms that start suddenly, where in the span of a few minutes it goes from no precipitation to a downpour. It occurred right about the time we were putting Milo to bed, and he was fussing in his crib because he didn't want to be going to bed ... well, as soon as that rain started pouring, Milo's whole demeanor changed -- he sighed, settled himself, and turned onto his side and promptly fell asleep. It was amazing -- that he would find the sound of the rain so comforting. Unless it was a total coincidence, of course.
We'll have to try one of those sound machines that plays different nature sounds, to see whether it will help him settle at night. We've been playing music for him at bedtime, but this might be worth experimenting with. :-)
Last night we had one of those rain storms that start suddenly, where in the span of a few minutes it goes from no precipitation to a downpour. It occurred right about the time we were putting Milo to bed, and he was fussing in his crib because he didn't want to be going to bed ... well, as soon as that rain started pouring, Milo's whole demeanor changed -- he sighed, settled himself, and turned onto his side and promptly fell asleep. It was amazing -- that he would find the sound of the rain so comforting. Unless it was a total coincidence, of course.
We'll have to try one of those sound machines that plays different nature sounds, to see if it will help him settle at night. We've been playing music for him at bedtime, but this might be worth experimenting with. :-)
OK, does anyone know why a helicopter was buzzing Brunswick--flying extremely low and making multiple passes at the city--at 3 AM last night?
I checked the Frederick News Post online but saw no mention of bad traffic accidents, barricade situations, or overturned rail cars.
The helicopter woke me up, it was so loud and so close...I literally thought it was going to land in the cemetery half a blockaway from our house.
Mysterious.
Edited to add:
My friend found out the helicopter was responding to an accident near the Maryland/West Virginia line. They needed a place to land.
This past weekend I blogged about the blinding light on top of the new Brunswick water tower...tonight as I was driving home late from my job #2, I noticed the blinking, blinding, painful strobe light had been replaced by a steady red light. Sweet relief for tired eyes!
Maybe the blinking, blinding strobe light was some kind of temporary emergency beacon signaling a problem at the tower? Hmm. Mysterious.
Today Milo has big news to share ... his first tooth is cutting through the gums. Yay!
We've suspected teething for a while, and he's been drooling, and making funny sucking faces and twisting his tongue around, and his gums have looked a little swollen -- Well, today, we see signs of a first tooth cutting through on the bottom. A very exciting day in our household. (Seriously: Jonah called me at work this afternoon to share the news. It was that exciting for us.)
Even with this new development, the little guy was sweet and happy all day (no crank). We'll see if and when he gets fussy about this ... I'm sure it will become uncomfortable. For now, so far so good. Hooray for you, Milo.
