Brusselball -- Part Deux

I really hope we get Round Two of the Travelling Brusselball game (Son of Brusselball) started up again!

Here's a picture of Perla playing with Brusselball The First.

A couple of family photos

We're getting ready for Dad and Lorraine's collective 160th birthday party. (That's 80 years for each of them.) I scanned in a bunch of really old photos so we can incorporate them into a slide presentation for their party. Here are just a couple.

This first one is a picture of Barry and me -- taken about a jillion years ago -- at Shakey's on Rockville Pike after an STSC softball game.



Next up is a picture of my Dad that was taken in front of the Smithsonian Castle sometime in the 70's. Check out the Gremlin over his shoulder!



Finally, here's a picture of the Kenner Kids!

We Can Do Better

This weekend, bloggers all over the world are coming together in the name of tolerance. Enough hatred, disrespect, name-calling, racism and killing. Here's hoping that the 21st century will be much less hateful than the 20th ever was.

I've done a lot of thinking about this, and I think there are really only two forces in the world: love and fear. Every negative thing can be traced back to fear, and every positive thing can be traced back to love.

What is greed? The fear of not having enough. What is hatred? The fear of "the other." Fear shuts you down. It closes you in. It separates you from others.

What is friendship? It's the love of a person who is special to you. What is fun? Ultimately, I think it is happy times shared with others whom you love. Great music, great art, great literature... they are all created by people who want to express their love through their own gifts. Love is expansive. It connects you to others and to the earth. Even science can be employed in the service of love by people who want to make a difference.

Lately, I have been focusing on the idea that good things are abundantly available. Just having that mindset helps you to see the good things that are around you all the time. You can get through the bad stuff by focusing on and appreciating what's good.

I've heard it said that the opposite of love is not hate. It is fear. For a different perspective on this, I found a quote from Plan Be, "The opposite of love is hate; but the obstacle to love is fear."

Thank you, Leon, for challenging me to write this post.

Answers to the "How Well Do You Know Andrea Kenner" Quiz

I got the idea from my friend Happy (i.e., John) to post an answer key to my "How Well Do You Know Andrea Kenner" Facebook quiz here on my blog. So for anybody who knows or cares, here it is

How well do you know Andrea Kenner? 1) Which of the following is not one of my cats? a) Augie b) Beckham c) Cali d) Ethel e) Perla Ethel is not my cat now, but I once had two cats named Lucy and Ethel. They previously "owned" a friend who moved to Atlanta. We kind of have an alphabetical theme for naming our cats, but Perla broke the mold. I mean, what can you say... she's a different kind of kitty. 2) I would secretly like to be a/an _______________ for a day. a) artist b) film critic c) deejay d) doctor e) singer I wouldn't mind being a deejay too, but I'm a shower/car singer who can really belt it out when no one is listening. Oh well, a person's got to know his or her limitations! 3) My favorite flavor of ice cream is a) Mint Chocolate Chip b) Denali Moose Tracks c) Peach d) Vanilla e) Yes! Pecan Mmm.... moose tracks. I like the idea of Yes! Pecan, but to be honest, I've never tried it. 4) What song would I choose to sing at a karaoke bar? a) The Love Shack b) Act Naturally c) It Wasn't Me d) Pink Cadillac e) Somewhere Over the Rainbow OK, believe it or not, I have actually already performed The Love Shack and It Wasn't Me in the great karaoke hall of fame that is The Cat's Meow in New Orleans. Neither one was by my choice, even though I really do love to sing the Love Shack. But I actually think I would do better on Act Naturally, becuase it has a smaller range. And, as Melissa Reilly knows, Pink Cadillac really bugs me because you can basically sing it in only three notes. I mean, it sounds cool and all, but it's pretty basic, and not really a singer's song. And Somewhere Over the Rainbow.... Oh forget it! It has a full octave change. The only thing that could be worse is trying to sing the Star Spangled Banner! 5) What is my favorite holiday? a) Hanukkah b) Christmas c) Passover d) Fourth of July e) Halloween I adore the Fourth of July. Maybe it's because it's close to my birthday, but I really think it's just because I'm such a summertime girl. 6) What is my favorite vacation spot? a) Vegas, baby! b) New Orleans c) Ocean City, MD d) Aspen e) Bermuda I know it doesn't sound glamorous, but I really love going to Ocean City. It's so homey. And I love the popcorn and the french fries. 7) What kind of car do I drive? a) Honda Civic b) Honda Accord c) Honda Insight d) Scion XA e) Toyota Camry I bought my Accord on July 8, 2000. That's a pretty easy date for me to remember, since it's my birthday. But don't tell anyone. For my next car... hmm.... maybe a Mini Roadster? 8) Who wold I most like to meet? a) Barack Obama b) Dick Cheney c) Brad Pitt d) Jennifer Aniston e) Billy Ray Cyrus OMG, I keep hoping I will run into the Big Kahuna. I mean I do live near DC and all. I guess I gotta start hanging out at Five Guys or something. 9) What would be the perfect present for me? a) A beach towel b) A treadmill c) A fruit basket d) Something with cats on it e) A vacuum cleaner Hee hee. This one's a giveaway. 10) How many credit hours do I have left to finish? a) 3 b) 6 c) 9 d) 12 e) 15

OK, as of this moment, I'm down to nine. I can't wait until this whole thing is over so I can stop worrying about writing the next paper!

Ciao!

Barry and Emma -- What a pair!

Don't they look cute together?

Augie and Cali

Don't these two look just like an old married couple? Augie takes very good care of his furriend Cali.

I guess I am The Star

I just took the Tarot Card test my buddy Mary posted on her blog. It looks like my Tarot card is The Star. Check it out!

You are The Star

Hope, expectation, Bright promises.

The Star is one of the great cards of faith, dreams realised

The Star is a card that looks to the future. It does not predict any immediate or powerful change, but it does predict hope and healing. This card suggests clarity of vision, spiritual insight. And, most importantly, that unexpected help will be coming, with water to quench your thirst, with a guiding light to the future. They might say you're a dreamer, but you're not the only one.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.

Tribute to a fighter... and a friend

It is Friday, February 17, 2006. The Big Guy is gone. The official diagnosis is congestive heart failure, but the real reason is his body finally wore out. According to the date of birth our vet had on record, he was 21 years, one month, and two days old. (DOB 1/15/1985).

The Big Guy had a special place in our hearts. He was the smartest cat I ever knew. He was always good and never bad. Yet... that cat was a fighter!

From the day Mr. Harold met him -- as he chased the neighbor's dog, Catfish, across the street and then ran away after Catfish got hit by a car -- to today, when he drew his final breath, he was never predictable, always faithful, always fully himself.

He was the only cat I've ever heard of who contracted feline leukemia and lived to tell the tale. He conquered anemia, rampant skin allergies that often left his paws a bloody mass, and a back injury. One of his ears was permanently torn from an old battle injury. Still, he loved warm spring days, and there was nothing he liked better than to sit on the porch swing and watch it rain. He loved chicken, and turkey, tuna fish, and Kraft mayonnaise.

Most of all, he loved his human, Mr. Barry. He knew exactly when Barry was about to turn the last corner on his way home, and he sat at the end of the driveway at just the right moment to welcome Barry home. He fully lived every one of his nine lives!

Once, many years ago, one of the neighbor kids asked me "Is he made of puma?" After thinking for half a second, I replied, "Of course he is."

Now, his great spirit is released from his old, tired body. I wish you well, Big Guy. I will never forget what you taught me.

What I know for sure

Here are a couple of things I know for sure:

• I know my name (but I'm not going to say it here). It's on my birth certificate and my driver's license. If the gubmint says that's who I am, it's good enough for me!


• I know my date of birth, and therefore my age. (Same documentation source and -- it's none of your business, thank you very much!)


• I know that I have three cats that call me Mom. (Well, actually, they call me Mao, but that's close enough!) I have their rabies certificates and tags, so I guess that's enough evidence that they're really mine.


• The sun came up this morning. I think it will go down this evening too, if the glare on my computer screen right now is any indication. (Squint squint.) The sun'll come up tomorrow. Bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow... there'll be sun.


• I know I was born. I've been told that I'll die too. It doesn't feel like I will, but since everything else eventually dies, I guess I will too someday. Where will "I" go when I die (if anywhere)? Anyone's guess.


• Right now, I know that I have to go. See ya!

A Zen garden for humans... a private haven for cats

My husband had a secret... one he recently revealed to me. I'm now revealing it to you.

When he cleans the litter boxes, he somehow gets the surface so smooth you could see yourself in it -- if the substance were glass or water instead of cat litter. I asked him how he does it, but for a while he didn't tell me.

Then yesterday, when we were out shopping, he said, "I'll tell you my secret." Intrigued, I asked "What secret?" He replied, "How I get the litter so smooth."

We have a little two-part dustpan and brush set that we use for sweeping up after the cats have "done their duty." After removing the soiled bits, of course, my husband lightly flicks the flat edge of the dustpan across the litter several times, smoothing and leveling as he goes.

I tried it this morning and I discovered two advantages to the procedure. In addition to informing the human caretakers that a cat has entered his or her "private haven," it also provides a peaceful, Zen-like feeling as the caretaker rakes and tends the litter. All for much less than the cost of the little sand gardens you see in the holiday catalogs.

Just sharing the joy.