Barking Mad

Halloween....Not So Bad After All, Oh and the Cat Came Back!

We are oh so very relieved that Griffy came back.  All it took was Gareth suggesting I stand at the back door and shake the bag of cat food.  So I did and to what did my wondering eyes appear?  A 22lb meowing tumbleweed of fur bounding over the fence and shooting up the steps to the back deck.  Yep, there was my large orange feline mewling his head off, as if to say; "ok, gimme food, will never run away again...feed me, FEEEEEED ME,can't you see I'm starving!!!!" 

Anyhow, we're glad he's back, because I couldn't handle listening to Gaby stand on the front porch steps howling her head off for the cat.  It was enough to break anyone's heart. 

I'm only going to post a couple of pics from today/tonight because my nose is running like a faucet and I'm about to fall over from exhaustion.  Tonight ended up being crazy.  I stopped counting trick or treaters at 135.  We had close to 175 I'd say.    I got some great pics of Meg and her friends (we ended up being crashed by 12 of her friends.  At first I was irritated, because there was no advance warning, but they are a great group of kids and I couldn't help but be buoyed by their great attitudes and fun spirit) as well as Gaby.  What's even better is that I got wonderful video of Gaby handing out candy.  Fun stuff.

For now though, here are a few from this afternoon and tonight.  Will post the rest tomorrow.

Our little bumblebee....her buzz is worse than her sting!

Pierre, the Pumpkin (above) - handiwork courtesy of Gareth, I'll post a better picture tomorrow.

Our two Halloween Cuties (Meg dressed up as Daisy Duke)

The "group" of Meg and her friends before heading out to trick or treat....

And here is one of Gregory, our household ghost getting ready to make his ghoulish appearance tonight....

That's all for now kiddies.  We have ten million things to do around the house as (Oh yeah I forgot to tell you all) one of my ducklings is returning to the mama's nest....Zack is returning to Maine.  He gets in at the ghastly hour of 5:45AM on Friday morning.  Lots to do, and not enough time to get it all done, especially when one doesn't feel too well to begin with.

112 and Counting...

That's how many trick or treaters we've had and it's only 7:15PM.  Seriously!

We've already gone through 25lbs of candy.   We had been told that Halloween in Bay Park was off the hook, but we really didn't have a clue.  And ya know, although I feel like something the dog left on the front lawn, I'm actually having a good time. 

Oh crap.....the cat got out!  I hadn't even thought about shutting the cats in the mudroom downstairs, and Griffy made a run for it once we opened the door to a bunch of kids.  Gareth said he bolted out of here like a shotgun.

Crap crap crap!!!!!!!!!!!

Halloween.....Bah Humbug!

*sniffle* 

*cough*

*sneeze*

Rinse and repeat. 

If it wasn't bad enough that Gaby has officially come down with her very first illness, outside of the UTI from last Christmas, well, she's got a dual ear-infection and throat infection for this Halloween.  Alas, whatever kicked off her ear and throat infections has bitten me as well and I'm pretty miserable.  From 5:30AM to 11:00AM this morning, she and I lay cuddled together, sniffling, coughing and moaning. 

Who need costumes when you look as awful as we do?

I'm seriously contemplating calling off whatever we were going to do for Halloween.  I don't know if I have the energy to wriggle her into her costume. 

*sniffle*

*cough*

*sneeze*

Remember Those Mud Bee-Things I Was Talking About?

If you read yesterday's post about my foray into the world of gardening, whilst it was indeed a short-lived experience, I came across something that looked like a bee or a wasp. It was more bee-like than anything and I have found exactly what it is. 

Above image courtesy of Scott Bauer, USDA Agricultural Service

It's called a Mustached Mud Bee and that is exactly what they looked like.  I think I must have hit the entire nest and broke apart parts of the dwelling, what ended up looking like tiny upside down bowl-shaped blobs of mud with the bees huddled inside. 

I found a very interesting article about the bee, so much so that I'm going to write to Dr. Batra, featured in the piece and ask her about these bees, if they are protected, etc.  They are fascinating and seem very docile.  And whilst, according to the article, they are less likely to sting than the honey bee is, I'm still keeping my distance.  I'm allergic to bees!   

I do feel a little bad that I probably broke apart an entire bee abode, but I had no clue they were there.  And it also sheds some light on what type of soil we have...clay.   I'm not even sure if tulips or any sort of bulb can thrive in that kind of soil.  *sigh*  Maybe I'll just end up cultivating mustached mud bees....from a distance.

So folks, there you have it, that's the story about the mud bee-like things. 

Greenthumb? Who's Bright Idea Was It to See if I Was in Possession of One?

I can safely say that I did not inherit my mother's penchant for gardening.   

Let me just say that whilst I love tulips, hydrangeas and hyacinth's, I do not like planting them myself.  I don't know where I got the impression that I would somehow be fulfilled as a homeowner, woman, blah blah blah if I planted a flower garden.  What was I smoking when I thought that one up?

I'd like to add to the above that I will be a very happy woman should I never have the occasion to ever muck around in the soil, yank weeds with trailing root systems 50 feet long, come across something that looks like a bee but has a little hut-like home deep in the soil (dug up about 75 of those, whatever they are!), and have worms the size of my thigh ooze their way across my hand, I will be a very happy woman.  Don't talk to me about digging deep into mother earth, smelling the rich earthiness of the soil and getting in touch with my inner-gardener because I will probably slap you into tomorrow. 

Frankly, it's much ado about nothing!

That earthy smell?  It's dirt!  Plain and simple.  It doesn't smell good at all.  Especially not when it looks like someone's cat has been using my planting beds as a litter box!  Come back to me with a rose, or a hyacinth and then tell me how good it smells.  Just don't make me plant it myself.

Getting in touch with my inner-gardener?  How can I do that when she doesn't exist.

Digging deep into mother earth?  Um, did you happen to read the part about mud bees/wasps and worms?  If not, then re-read all of the above and see if you want to try and sell me on the finer points of starting a flower garden.  Worms are for birds and people who fish.   I do not fish, therefore I have no need to see one up close and personal - I still have the heebie jeebies just thinking about it crawling across the back of my hand. 

Oh and did I mention my aching back and bruised knees?   

Oh oh oh, and the math!  Who woulda thought you'd need to know anything about math in order to plant a garden?  Well let me tell you, YOU DO!   Tulips have to be planted so far down and the bulbs need to be spaced so far apart.  Well here I am with two huge beds out front, not having a clue as to how big they are, or anything else for that matter, with 45 tulip bulbs and 12 hyacinth bulbs.   If I were smart I would have measured my planting area and then had someone figure out the rest...and had them dig it up, and pull those damned viney weeds out, and then plant my bulbs.

So, what I am I going to do with my other 27 (I planted 18 of the nasty buggers before I said the hell with it) tulip bulbs and 12 hyacinth bulbs you ask? I’m getting some huge terra cotta planter things and planting them in those.

Next year I’m paying someone with a certified green thumb to come reconstruct my flower beds. And I’d be willing to bet that whoever it is, enjoys fishing too!