Yesterday I went to Publix in the morning to take advantage of the sales (their sales go from Wednesday to Tuesday). I especially like their buy one get one free sales, and take advantage of them to stock up on the stuff I use regularly – Pam, bagels, english muffins, dog treats, Cheerios. I don’t know how it is that I show up at the store ten minutes after they open, there’s NO ONE ELSE around, and yet somehow their shelves of whatever the fuck I’m there to buy are almost completely wiped out. I managed to get two cans of Olive Oil Pam, but there were only two cans on the shelf, so whoever came along after me was shit out of luck. I wonder if they deliberately don’t stock the shelves of stuff that’s on sale so that one person can’t come in and buy all of one sale item. Publix doesn’t usually have a limit on the number of sale items you buy at one time, so it could happen, I suppose.
I went home and put the groceries away, ate breakfast, and then headed to Kroger. Fred’s been completely out of Diet Pepsi (we are a house divided – he prefers Diet Pepsi, I don’t drink that stuff unless I’m desperate) and has been drinking my Diet Coke for the past week. I don’t like to share my Diet Coke, and Kroger has Pepsi products on sale for 88 cents a 2-liter, so it was time to haul my ass to Madison and stock up for him.
When I was done at Kroger, I was going to come home, but I decided that since it wasn’t so very far to Petsmart, I’d run by there and see how my boys were doing. Then I could go over to Bed, Bath and Beyond, and buy a bag of the kettle corn (korn?) they’re selling. They’re big bags, and they’re $3.99 each and they are LIKE CRACK, and neither Publix nor Kroger carried any bags of premade kettle korn (corn?), and have I mentioned that this stuff is fantastic?
So I saw the boys at Petsmart (more down there in the kitteh section) and browsed the pet costumes. I was so very, very tempted to buy a princess hat to put on Jake, but in the end I didn’t. I went over to Bed, Bath and Beyond and grabbed up some kettle corn (korn?) and browsed through the store. When I was in the store last week, they had a pet carrier on sale, this one:
the black one, and they were marked down to $9.99 each. I had a couple of 20% off coupons, so I bought one, took it out to the car, and then went back in and bought the other. I deliberated buying the third one, but didn’t have another coupon, so opted not to. When I got home, I set up the carrier, put a pad in the bottom of the carrier, and put one by my desk, and the other in a corner of my bedroom. They are SUPER popular with the cats. Spanky and Sugarbutt take turns laying in the one by my desk (the front flap of the carrier folds down, so it just looks like a little cave), and Miz Poo likes to hang out in the one in my bedroom and watch the kittens. She’s even spent the night in there a few times, which is amazing for her, since she usually likes to get right up in my face and tickle me with her whiskers all night long.
Anyway, they still had the third carrier, but on my way to the cashier, I realized it wasn’t marked down to $9.99 the way the other two were. It was the regular price of $29.99 (!), so I put it back and just bought my kettle korn (corn?) (the whole korn/ corn question could be solved by my going into the kitchen and looking at the damn bag, but I’m too goddamn lazy to walk the ten feet to do so).
Lastly, I ran over to Target because I needed a new broom and dustpan, and I found the selections at Publix, Kroger, and Bed, Bath and Beyond to be lacking. I have three (I think) dustpans in the house, and two of them suck. The third is a Rubbermaid dustpan and it’s the Best! Dustpan! Ever! (my god, is this not the most fascinating topic on earth? Should I start talking about the weather next, you think?). Alas, even Target didn’t have the Rubbermaid dustpan, so I opted for the Mrs. Libman broom and dustpan combo.
I got home, and it wasn’t even noon. I put everything away, spent some time with the kittens, ate lunch, and then snoozed on the couch.
It even rained for about 20 minutes, so all in all? A very good day!
(PS: I got up off my ass to look. It’s neither kettle korn nor kettle corn – it’s kettlecorn! Made by these guys. I’ve tried the cinnamon flavor (which isn’t even listed on their web page), but prefer the original. I haven’t tried the smoked cheddar, but it certainly sounds good. Also, according to their list of retailers, Publix carries the stuff. I went over that aisle with a fine-tooth eyeball (two of them!), and our local Publix doesn’t carry them, I can tell you that.)
Sights from around Crooked Acres.
Gracie, keeping a watchful eye on… something. (I don’t remember what she was watching so closely.)
“DID SOMEONE SAY ‘COOKIE’?!?!”
Four of the approximately ten young chickens who leave the back forty every morning and spend their day wandering the property. These four are from the same…. litter (?), and spend all their time together. That’s the burn pile they’re hanging out in.
Another wanderer.
These are assassin bugs, right? They seem to be hanging out on in flocks on my tomato plants, waiting for their prey to come along.
Bee on a Morning Glory.
Just-hatched assassin bugs. I went back to look at them a couple of hours later, and they’d vamoosed.
Mama Silkie and some of her babies.
Mama Silkie and more of her babies (please note the tiny chicken butt to the left, as one of her babies decides he needs to be under her wing).
Mama Buff and some of her babies.
Mama Silkie, lecturing.
“I have HOW MANY babies?”
“I can’t afford that much child support! I guess I better start looking for a job. Sexing up the wimminfolk doesn’t pay much ’round these parts.”
Check out the crossed paws. She’s always a lady, our Gracie.
George, looking like a ragamuffin.
Standing near the gate, note that Gracie has spotted something, while George is staring off into space.
They race off…
…chickens scattering…
…and stare at the intruder (a dog belonging to a neighbor had wandered across our property).
The end. (Nothin’ cuter than a chicken butt!)
Sweet, stretchy Dodger.
The MMMs (including Dodger) are slowly starting to explore the house more. Martin is sleeping on a cat bed on my desk right this moment, Moxie’s sleeping on top of the bookcase in the front room, and Dodger is hanging out on the cat tree in the front room. I’ve even seen Melodie come downstairs several times. They tend to run off when the TV is turned on (I think they aren’t quite sure what to make of the noise), but I’m sure it’ll only be a matter of time before they’re hanging out with us while we watch TV in the evenings.
We call this next series of pictures “Martin’s mouth writes a check his tail can’t cover.” Or maybe “You mess with the bull, you get the horns.”
Awww, look at the pictures I found on my hard drive! It’s Bolitar, hanging out with Tommy!
I stopped by Petsmart yesterday to check on my boys. I intended to go into the cat room and give them some love, but they were curled up together so sweetly sound asleep that I didn’t want to wake them up. By all reports, they’re adjusting pretty well to the adoption center, and aren’t scared or hiding in the litter box anymore. They also haven’t been adopted yet, obviously, but I sense that this will be their weekend! I can dream, right?
Corby, in his favorite snoozing spot.
The Reacher Creature, mid head shake.
Elwood and Reacher, keeping an eye on things.
Coltrane, coming over for some petting. And a wandering chicken. Neither of them seems terribly impressed by the other.
Previously
2009: Maybe Bill just thought I didn’t have enough to worry about?
2008: “I SEE YOU HAS CORN GIVE TO ME NOM NOM NOM”
2007: Who needs a stinkin’ appendix, anyway?
2006: No entry.
2005: (I shot a man in Texas, just to watch him die.)
2004: No entry.
2003: So basically I paid twice as much for a keyboard as I would have on my own for no good reason, all thanks to that Staples employee, may he rot in hell.
2002: I hope that leaf doesn’t give me a damn yeast infection.
2001: No entry.
2000: I’m not sure what happened next. I believe I blacked out.