We’ve been procrastinating the pond netting, because, a) the netting roll was locked up and I didn’t know where the key was, and b) we’re up to our ears in editing and c) it’s a big job.
So yesterday while Jane was deep in edit, I undertook the run to Petco after cat food (or else), and the run to Bed, Bath, and Beyond after refills for fizzy bottles for Jane’s Soda Stream—because Walmart screwed up and got the wrong size bottles, and she’s getting desperate. And to Costco after a list of things we’re out of. The first two were not too bad. The next one—OMG. I was there fairly early, and I thought this would save me crowds. Not so. The plants are spring things are in. It was a slow-moving, large-family zoo. Every line was at least 10 carts long. And in my line there’s a large family having a dispute with the cashier, forever. Finally they get this settled. Everybody in this line is buying for a large Antarctic expedition—at least—or has a lot of plants, which have to be handled carefully. Gal before me not only has plants, she checks out, and can’t pay. Husband gave her the wrong card. Pin won’t work. Finally they let her give a check. I get checked out, mind, with monster containers of cat litter, which I can barely lift—yours truly is no teenager. Broke my fingernails. But I got ’em in.
Ok. I get home, get unloaded with Jane’s help, fix lunch, because Jane’s still working on that passage. I haven’t stopped vibrating from the shopping trip. I decide, yes, I’m going to sit down and relax.
Jane comes in upset—sometimes in edit or work, we take a turn around the pond, just to think, and one of her favorite fish is missing. We’ve been procrastinating the netting, right. So poor Ishida may have paid for our hesitation.
She goes after the netting, and I nose-count the fish. Ishida is there. So are two lookalikes. Everybody is there. But spooky, inclined to stay under the winter shelter.
Well, we declare, on consultation, we could have had a predator fly-by, which would upset them. And maybe it’s a karmic warning, this mistake. So we decide to put the netting on.
I’m exhausted. I’m sitting down on pondside. Jane takes the netting across the pond, while I hold the roll. I miscut the first strip, and we’re kind of short of netting. So we move that netting to the winter-shelter side of the bridge, attach it, which requires moving rock and crawling around bushes with delicate buds ready to bloom, and iris, which are fragile. We get another long strip ready, and fasten it. Each of these strips is about 6 feet wide, so that, with the 3′ wide bridge, covers quite a lot of pond, and we’re now down to using netting which has been folded, and is not in a roll. We decide to risk the minor ends of the pond which aren’t covered, difficult spots for a predator. I am by now really, really done in.
So…we still have some work to go, and the netting is lying on water surface and on the lilies, not tight enough, but it’s on. I have a notion to use a lengthwise piece of fishing line stretched from the bridge to the end of the pond to lift that netting up right at the sag point and thus keep the netting well above the lilies. I know how to do this. And I think this will wait a couple of days. The lilies have pads up, but most are just starting to leaf. There’s plenty of time for this.
Isn’t wonderful when a crises isn’t? How happy and relieved you must have been to see all your swimmies there.
We lost five of our goldfish this winter. We think they were the oldest ones (about 5 yrs.), but it may also be do to our long and hard winter. We are going to get a little heater for next winter. Pond people in this area use them a lot; they seem to to the job.
You are putting your mesh on when we are thinking of taking ours off, in a while. Right now we have a marsh hawk and our red tail hawk admiring the pond in turns from the branch of a tree that hangs over the water. “Hey buddy, that is food! If you are not going to eat it, i will!” Everything will be fine once the trees leaf out.
We have daffodils and various varieties of violets but not much else. At least it’s warming up and we should avoid a blueberry frost. Unhappily Woodrow the Woodchuck is back. If he will just stay back by the shed we will let him stay. I’m assuming he is a Woodrow and not a Woodrina! If there are babies there will be a relocation project in order. Cuteness will go out the window! Chili pepper spray does wonders for saving my flowers!
Our next project is replacing the pool liner. It finally bit the dust this winter. It’s ten years past warranty so I can’t really complain!
I keep thinking that we should be planting vegs, but it’s way too cool. I think it’s because the winter lasted into April that we just want it!
So very sorry about your fishy friends. And luck re-doing that pond liner. I dread the day! Though ours has a 20 year guarantee—who’s going to collect on it, who’s even going to have the paperwork?
It’s the above ground swimming pool liner that needs replacing. I’ve found that stuff that has a long warranty generally lasts beyond the end date. Ours was 10 yrs past the end date, so no complaints there!
To my surprise when our blue ray dvd player went, all the info was at Best Buy on their computers. Ah, modern times have their advantages!
I don’t even want to contemplate replacing the pond liner! The mind boggles!
By the way, I love Tracker, particularly Irene!
I’m beginning to loathe Costco’s register policies. Last I was there, a manager(?) and a clerk(?) were gabbing about something in the midst of the always long lines at the registers. Only half the registers were open and they were in the way. I’m spoiled by Trader Joe’s where three people in a line causes a ding! to call for another register to open, even if the manager has to do it.
Anyway, try to catch the Google doodle on Nellie Bly, pioneering 19th century journalist, who in tamer moments went around the world in 72 days–no airplanes. Article:
http://pictorial.jezebel.com/happy-birthday-to-nellie-bly-investigative-journalist-1702327104
Thanks for that. 🙂
The employees at Costco should be more enthusiastic: in their type of commerce, they are among the highest paid, with the best benefits, while their CEO takes only a nice living from the company. I like their owner’s ethics, but I sure wish they’d have more checkers on. I will say, they’re working like troopers, but the press of bodies and carts is something else…in our case, there was one ‘dead’ register, and they did open it, but having the faith to cut over to that line [ie, do they REALLY mean it, and can I outmaneuver the mother of three with the cart that looks like Everest, or not?
All the pay in the world can’t make a crappy job interesting. That’s Trader Joe’s “secret”. TJ’s pays well, too, but their employees are happier because every “crew member” is trained for every job. In addition to mind-numbing checking, they refill inventory, arrange and straighten shelves, demo products, and always help customers. If a crew member sees a customer with an issue, they’ll stop what they’re doing and deal with it. Even while checking, they’ll call another crew member (including the manager) to deal with it. If a checker runs out of customers, they’ll go get customers from other lines; when have you seen that at Costco?
The key is that they aren’t cogs in a machine–the industrial revolution model–but autonomous contributors; and they’re treated as such, for example getting to try the products so they can intelligently discuss them with customers. (You can walk in the store a minute before closing, no problem, because the crew is going to have a tasting party after closing.) Costco still goes by the assembly line model that an employee should be given a single mind-numbing task under the assumption they can get really, really good at it–what they’ll get is really, really bored. Doing one mechanical thing all day is very infelicitous.
You and Jane are autonomous all the time. The vast majority of workers never get even a little autonomy.
(And, no, I have no stake in TJ’s. I wish! Unfortunately, it’s privately held.)
That makes me want to find and try Trader Joe’s locally, if they’re around here.
The big box warehouse model with the employee drones? Awful. And customer service at such places is nothing like the mom-and-pop customer is always right values I grew up with, because my parents (my mom) owned a small business (art and frame shop). (The smell of linseed oil and turpentine still turns me nostaligc, it feels like home.)
Very many local businesses now have gone to… the impossible “mood lighting” to save money. But… I swear, I may actually wear the miner’s/hiker’s hat and lamp I got in protest. Because it is so, so hard to *see* now in such places. — My local Fry’s Electronics? They discoverered their customers and clerks can’t see either…. They now put little table lamps by their aisle end-cap computers and workstations, so they can, ahem, see what they’re doing. — My local grocery store has gone from an easy, fun shopping experience to… I now dread it and spend way too much time looking for things. (They reorganized when they cut down the lighting to “mood lighting” levels.
Uh…mood lighting is OK for a restaurant, except that I want to be able to see to order. Mood lighting, maybe OK for a bar, but hey, if I’d like to meet anyone, I would sort of like to see what they look like. Not that looks are everything. They’re not, at all. But yeah, you do sort of want to have some idea who the other guy (or whoever) is. This is one reason I don’t often go to bars. Heh. But not opposed to it either. Just never have gotten the hang of it, I guess.
Grumble, grumble. … Uh, I really do not want to turn into that cranky old geezer who yells at kids for getting on his lawn!
http://www.traderjoes.com/stores
One might suggest the deterioration of my hypothalamus that’s turning my short memory to a sieve might be a crisis. I forgot to “change clothes” for this month on the first, again! 🙁
Paul — represent!!
If anyone gets tired of kitty updates, please scold me. Junior arrived last night and refused to come out of the carrier. Zorro, meanwhile, was very interested in all the new accouterments that had arrived along with him. Once she realized that butt in the carrier belonged to another cat, there was a brief round of hissing. At that point, we put the carrier (with Junior still inside) in the bathroom for overnight, along with litterbox et. al. and shut the door. This morning we found Junior in the middle of the bathroom floor, staring at the window; it’s been years since he saw or smelled fresh air. He’s still there, behind the trash can; the bathroom door is open, and I will stay home today to monitor things. There is a pet supply store within walking distance, so I may call over and see if they have Feliway.
Eh, represent?
Is liking the outfit, dude. Penguinz in da house! 😀
That sounds like a pretty good start for Junior and Zorro. Could be worse. Sounds like he’s liking his current spot a little bit.
Smokey, when I first got him, was tiny and scared to death of the hairless two-legged giant. I have never been all that scary, really. But after some convincing that hiding under the pillows on the bed was not a good idea (was afraid I’d roll over on the furball) and some time hiding under the bed (him, not me) … well, he eventually figured it out. His introduction to my house (and Goober) went better. he eventually decided if I wasn’t going to *eat* him, fed and liked him, he had another kitty to play with, and a whole house to explore…. Therefore, he must be king o’ the world. (There was no posing on the bow of the ship scene, though. Darn.)
Smokey took about two weeks to get from scared silly to owns the place. He still thinks he owns it.
Goober’s intro to the house went much better, prior, but he was the sole kitty then.
So Junior and Zorro may work things out OK. — And Cj’s earlier comment about shared adversity? Yeah, the new gato and Zorro may turn out fine. Luck on y’all!
Hey, we’re interested in whatever’s going, and new kitties are an Event to celebrate. So hoping Junior gets his happy forever place.
We have a Trader Joe’s, but it’s about as far from us as you can get, diametrically opposite side of town. We’ll have to give it a try, though.
I like TJ’s. 🙂
Two 85% cacao chocolate bars for under $2 (here). Half a kg of (IIRC) 70% about $6. Or 50%. Or milk. Lots of dark chocolate, but relatively little milk. Just ask any crew member to give you a tour of their chocolate (or whatever else you want).
I live on TJ’s!
KOCO: “Norman! Norman! Get into your shelter, Norman!” ~4:10 PDT (6:10 OK time?) ~4:15 incoming to OKC. http://www.koco.com/news/koco-5-tracks-severe-weather/32009682
Trader Joe’s and Costco are coming to Tulsa. I can’t wait!
It’s a new outfit, but it’s not really me. I’m more of a blue jeans and flannel shirt (at least this time of year in this locale) kind of guy.
Trade Joe’s is great! Absolutely check it out!! Good prices and great sauces, frozen tamales, chocolate, Triple Ginger Snap cookies… Oh yes, and the dried fruit! I adore the dried sour cherries!! All sorts of stuff.
Really, check them out! Like Walt, I have no “skin in the game” with them, just really enjoy their food and prices.
LOL more kitty stuff…
Its been… a &*#&% week here… I’m working to get this place (not mine, I’m just the house-occupant until it sells) ready to go on the market, so I’ve been in and out and up and down moving stuff, cleaning, touching up, whatever needs done. The real estate woman is doing the ‘staging’ and the owner is out of the country, so I’m organizing a storage unit, wrangling a crews to schlep, mop, and mow, handle escorting people through who the owner thinks might want to purchase furniture fated for storage, as well as DOING the painting and repairs(my job!) Plus I’m house sitting off site, and trying to run my own business as well as work part time. Mind you, I found out last Saturday that the photographer was booked for THIS Saturday.
All the commotion has been driving the fur-kids a bit nuts. Squeaky is my shelter kitty, I got her as an adult, 3 or 4 years ago and she’s been an indoor cat since. BUT…. I strongly suspect she was an avid hunter. BK (BitchyKitty) is my arthritic Scottish fold with Attitude. She’s a bit of a prima dona.
In the midst of all the insanity going on, Squeaky decided to sneak out and have an adventure while I was getting the weekly trash out. I was so distracted trying to figure things out I didn’t even notice for an hour or so, when she didn’t show up for food! This is a kitty who is very stomach oriented, she’ll pass on pets and doesn’t like being picked up, but anything even slightly FOOD-ish gets her immediate undivided attention.
When I went to feed them (a teaspoon of wet food at bed time, mostly so I can get BK’s cosiquin into her) BK was… a bit too proud of something. When I realized Squeaky was NOT showing up, I grabbed the crack bag (Temptations kitty treats) and started rattling. Then went rattling outside. Walked up to the trash. Walked back around in the house, hitting all the closed off rooms. Rattled in the garage. Went BACK outside and rattled some more. EVENTUALLY I heard “Squeak!” from the top of a 6ft cinder-block wall between this yard and the neighbors. SQUEAKY, the little twit, is up there all but rolling over the wall, very happy with her adventure. I finally got her off the wall, then after she insisted on getting down (the scratches are almost healed!) lead her into the house rattling the crack bag.
As soon as she saw Squeaky, BK went BALLISTIC. Hissing, spitting , swatting, generally being UberBK. I’m not sure if it was just she thought she won the lottery and that fuzzy co-inhabitant was GONE, or if Squeaky smelled strange and scary. Or both. It took almost an hour for her to settle down.
Sigh. fuzzkids. Just when I think my stress level has maxed, I realize I should know better!