songbird's crazy world

       

So someone  (and we all know who) likes to step on my keyboard …   I just have to work around that tail …

And today’s theme is “grateful”. Here are songs about some of the things I’m grateful for. Let’s start with this fur ball. Shadow is a lively kitten, I’m sure she’ll grow up to be a marvelous cat.    Now, this cat is more reserved, more regal.  For the appropriately-named Duchess:       The most important people in my life. For Jen I chose a TV theme.  Jen is a court clerk, assigned to criminal court. She often works in the arraignment part.  So this theme suits her.    Becca just got engaged, so …    And Drew?    And now I have to change gears for a moment.  Back in 1980 there was a movie called Fame.  It had a catchy theme song, sung by a then-unknown actress, who told us she planned to live forever and implored us to “remember [her] name.”   Irene Cara died on Saturday.  We remember her today.   

 Yeah, Miss Moon Shadow likes candied sweet potatoes. And my daughters and future son-in-law like Miss Moon Shadow.

 So I watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade every year.  I really love the first hour, when the casts of various Broadway shows perform.   So I was sitting here, watching the parade, with a little miscreant purring in my lap. And then the cast of The Lion King  began to sing. And the cat jumped off my lap, ran over to the tv, and watched the performance. And when they cut to commercial after the song, she came back to where I was sitting.

 If you follow me into the bathroom, please look before you leap — you’ll avoid getting wet. Can we please keep the litter in the litter box, not on the floor? Your paws do not belong on my kitchen table. Or counters.  Or in the sink or dishwasher. And it goes without saying that you shouldn’t knock things off the counters, And please stay off my keyboard.  You should not be answering my email. Can we not chase toys at midnight? Nighttime is for sleeping. The drawstrings on my sweatpants and hoodie are NOT toys.  I give you plenty of things to play with, leave my clothes alone.   Soft paws, not claws, if you want to grab my arm or leg. If you sit on me while I’m in bed, I prefer to look at your pretty face, not the other end, thankyouverymuch. Dinner will be served at 5:00.  Not 4:00 and definitely not 3:30, and I don’t care how loudly you meow.  You sound like a squeaky toy, by the way. And yes, I know my food is much yummier than cat food, and I will share with you.  But do not help

 So the other day Shadow and I went downstate my friend Jenn’s house.  Jenn is an expert in feline pedicures, i.e., she knows how to clip a cat’s claws.    I wanted her to do Shadow’s claws. Jenn has two cats, Katnis and Mavis.  Katis ignored us, but Mavis was curious about the newcomer.   Shadow took one look at Mavis and HISSED!  As soon as Jenn was done clipping her nails, I had to put Shadow in her carrier.  Where she promptly fell asleep.

 It’s a “your choice” week. Every week we are invited to the dance floor.  This week I am featuring songs that are also a dance.  Let’s do The Twist    That was so much fun, let’s do it again I learned to do the Alley Cat when I was a kid    How about the Hustle?    Or the Loco-motion?    The Electric Slide    And we will end with the Macarena    

Keyboard protector  

     No cat ever asked permission before taking up residence on your keyboard. Today Miss Moon Shadow, all four pounds of her, archived four emails, then locked me out of my account, necessitating a call to the company Help Desk.

 Shadow has her first appointment December 3.  We are going with Drew and Duchess.  Maybe Duchess can give Shadow some pointers on how to survive the ordeal.

 Found a piece of costume jewelry in my junk drawer.  Almost forgot I had it. It seems appropriate to wear it again.

 Cats must have a sixth sense. I bought a toy for Duchess a few months ago.  She didn’t like it, so I left on the bed in Drew’s guest room. I decided Shadow would like the toy.   When I went to the bedroom to fetch it … Duchess followed me, jumped up on the bed and stared at me, as if to say “You can’t take that, it’s mine.  I don’t care that I don’t like it, it’s still mine, and you cannot give it to that…that …that … kitten! ” Sorry, pussycat…

 And today’s theme is “thankful”. Well, I’ve really got something  to be thankful for.  My daughter Becca got engaged Saturday night.I am thankful that she met her soulmate, a man who loves her, a life partner who treats her well and makes her happy.  I’ve never seen her as happy as she is with Brendon. So, just one song today.

 Do cats understand English?  I mean, do they live up to their names? When Drew adopted that little gray ball of fur, he let Jen and Becca choose her name.  They wanted a Disney-themed name.  The mother cat in The Aristocats is named Duchess. Our Duchess is very regal, she rules over the house like a true aristocrat.  She is somewhat reserved,  You’ll never catch her curling up in someone’s lap, though she will graciously sit beside you if she deems you worthy of her attention.  A handful of people are allowed to pet her.  Shadow is also aptly named.  She follows me everywhere.   She loves to sit on my desk and bat at the cursor on my computer screen.  I share every meal with her. There’s a furry audience when I shower or brush my teeth.  I am never alone at home, she is always nearby. Reminds me of a song …

 My daughter Becca sent me this photo Just call me “Mother of the Bride”

 Cat has to learn manners. “Get down” means “get your furry little butt off the table”.  It does NOT  mean “stare at me and pretend you’re allowed to be there.”

 

  That look … how dare you try to work when I am sitting here? Yeah, she likes to sit on my desk.  On the laptop.  She’s a very smart cat, after all. Still eating anything and everything, of course.  Yells at me if her dinner is late. Insists on tasting everything I eat. Cat zoomies at midnight!  She loves to chase that toy mouse … We had our first casualty.  I was in the bedroom when I heard a crash!   in the kitchen.  A flower vase.  I had to put her in the pet carrier while I cleaned up broken glass. But when she sits in my lap and purrs … or when she’s dreaming and her paws start moving while she’s asleep…or when she looks at me with love in her eyes …

 Today is my daughter Jen’s birthday!  Happy birthday to my firstborn, she’s 32 years old today. Jen and Becca were typical tweens/teens of their generation.  And that included music, of course.We saw Britney Spears in concert at Nassau Coliseum.  We saw *NSYNC there, too, and both girls were convinced Joey Fautone winked at them. We saw The Backstreet Boys at Jones Beach. And then there was Aaron Carter.  The younger brother of Backstreet’s Nick Carter, Aaron was a preteen heartthrob in the days of Y2K.  We never saw him in concert, but in 2001 he appeared on Broadway in “Seussical the Musical”, and we were lucky to get tickets.   After the show we went to the stage door, hoping for an autograph, but no …However, the girls actually touched the limo  that took Aaron from the theater.  Which apparently was a big deal among the tween set. Carter died Saturday, at the ripe old age of 34.   So today it’s time to play some of the music that brought joy to my preteen daughters.         

“Mom, where were we when you put me in a holding cell?” She texted the question while she was at work. A holding cell is a small jail cell inside the courthouse, adjacent to a courtroom, where a prisoner waits until it’s his/her turn to see the judge.  Jen is a court clerk, assigned to criminal court, so she is very familiar with holding cells.   But yes, she was in a holding cell when she was a child. She must have been about 9 years old, and  it was “Take Our Daughters To Work Day”.   I had to go to a court conference in the Bronx, so I took Jen and Becca with me.  At the time my sister was an Assistant District Attorney in the Bronx, so after the girls and I finished with my court conference, we met up with my sister and one of her friends — a uniformed court officer.  He asked if we wanted to see a holding cell. He led us from the hallway into a small room.  There was nothing in the room except the cell.  It was very bare-bones, just a bench to sit on, a toilet and a sink.  No priv

 So I checked … and come January, my new prescription plan covers Pill A and Pill C, but not Pill B. I don’t think I’ll have a problem next year. I hope.

 I drove over to Dr. W’s office yesterday to pick up some free samples of the medication he prescribes for me.  I’ve been taking this medication for a minor medical issue for about 2 1/2 years now So why didn’t I just call the pharmacy and order a refill? Actually, I tried to get a refill. My insurance company wouldn’t authorize it.  Seems they no longer cover that particular medication.  One they approved 2 1/2 years ago. I started seeing Dr. W about 8 years ago.  He prescribed a medication I will call Pill A.  This medication worked for me. Then in March 2020, I changed jobs, and therefore also changed health insurers.   My new insurance didn’t cover Pill A.  I tried Pill B, which didn’t work, and then Dr. W prescribed Pill C.  I’ve been taking Pill C for almost 2 1/2 years, and it’s been fine. But now, suddenly, the insurance company won’t pay for it. So Dr. W gave me some pills to tide me over while we pursue an appeal. Want to laugh?  One of the alternatives the insurance company