A to Z: Pico Prefers Peanuts

Pico is a Yellow-Naped Amazon parrot that my father inherited after my paternal grandmother passed away almost 25 years ago. He's in his mid-50s.

Pico's favorite treats are peanuts that are still in the shell, and cream cheese. He can only have a couple of the peanuts, and a very teensy weensy bit of cream cheese, because those treats are sort of like candy for a bird. They are OK in very small amounts, but should not be the main course.

Pico also enjoys strolling atop his cage, taking short jaunts around the house as the dog sniffs his butt, and long walks on the beach. OK, maybe not the walks on the beach, but he does enjoy having a beach-like atmosphere. He loves to go outside and get hosed off on a sunny morning. That really makes him sing and flap his wings.

My grammy never really trained Pico well. He used to chew the knobs of the cabinets, and even bit my dad's finger to the bone once. That was back when my dad thought he could still scratch Pico's head when he stuck his finger in the cage and said, "scratch, scratch?" Pico didn't take kindly to that the way he used to.

It's OK though. As long as my parents keep him at arms length by using a broom handle to transport him from place to place, he's happy. He obviously enjoys our company, just not our fingers inside his cage, unless they are transporting some sort of sustenance.

Pico loves to sing and dance. He sings opera, and dances to music. He'll also say things such as "Wanna buy a bird?" "Polly want a cracker," "Where's Erik?" (Erik is my dad), "I'll mow ya down!" "Wanna buy a duck?" "Better buy Bird's Eye!" "Hello Pico!" and "I love you Pico!" He clearly cares deeply about himself, but you can't love others until you love yourself first. At times, he sounds like a self-help CD.

Even though Pico will bite your hand off, he is a very sweet bird. I know that seems like a contradiction, but it's true. He's a sweetie-pie, and I love him to pieces.

My only problem is that I don't think people should have birds or reptiles as pets. These are animals that really need to be able to fly or roam free. My parents actually taught me that, and never would have bought a parrot on their own.

They will take the best possible care of Pico, but we all feel bad that he can never fly free. Once they are domesticated (especially one that has lived inside for so many years), you really can't send them back to the wild.

So, I feel a bit sorry for him, but I'm glad he's as happy as he can possibly be as a domesticated bird. I love you, Pico!

Overcoming Originally Ousted Olives

I hate weight-loss diets. I really don't think I need one anyway, because I actually eat pretty well. In fact, I have an almost entirely organic (hey, another O!) diet. But I don't consider that a special weight-loss diet. It's just a healthy lifestyle. It's not set in stone or anything. I eat out with friends, and sometimes even eat food that is pretty nasty if I'm at a party and don't want to starve.

The only problem is that I had been gaining a bit of weight. I've gained it slowly, over a long period of time. It's probably due to my love of dairy products. I also love chocolate, although I prefer my chocolate very dark. I'm actually not a big fan of sugar. I don't even like most salt, which can also cause weight gain.

So, I've been very annoyed by my weight-gain, without wanting to do anything drastic to fix the problem. I exercise a bit, but even training and competing in a zombie run didn't really help me lose much weight, and left me with foot and ankle pain that wouldn't go away for a long time.

The only olives I can stand to eat.
Also notice that they are sitting between
two dairies in the fridge: organic raw cream
and organic yogurt. Yum! :)

So, I was watching Dr. Oz (hey, another O!) one day, and he has some guests on talking about a really easy way to lose weight: just add a little more food to each meal. That food can consist of about an ounce of anything from nuts to dark chocolate to avocado. They call these foods MUFAs.

The problem is that I love everything on the MUFA list so much, that I have a tendency to eat way more than an ounce of those things. So, I decided to go for the one MUFA item that I hate: olives. In fact, my two least favorite foods in the whole world are olives and grapefruit. This was going to be interesting.

My mother and I decided to try the diet together. My mom loves olives, so she's always trying to get me eat try new types of olives. I usually do try them, because the one thing that can override my possible hatred of a food is my curiosity of how it may taste.

I've hated all olives so far, but I decided to choose the one type of olive I hate the least: Castelvetrano whole green olives by Mezzetta. They have the seeds in them, but they are the most mild olives I've tried. I still don't like them, but I'm getting used to them. At least I can tolerate them.

The best part is that it works! I've actually lost weight without changing anything in my nearly non-existent exercise routine. I just eat one or two olives with each meal, and lose weight. It's very cool.

There's one other thing I've been doing that stopped the weight gain, before trying the olives. I will talk about that for W. My W word stopped weight-gain, and olives helped me to actually lose weight. Stay tuned!

A to Z: Nothing (Boston Bombings)

Due to the Boston Bombings, I am taking a break from the A to Z challenge for a day. I was originally planning to write about nicknames, but I'm going to save it for after the challenge. I am reserving "N" for remembrance today.

My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and their families.

I'm not a news reporter, and I thought a fellow Yahoo Contributor said it best:

"There are a lot of hoaxes (fake photos) circulating the internet of those who were injured and killed in yesterday's Boston bombings. Think TWICE before you share them and please remember two things- One, don't believe everything you read; Two, keep your newsfeed positive. Remembrance is great, but rumors take away from the good in the world."

  via Facebook: Sandra Wise

Image: http://wac.450f.edgecastcdn.net/80450F/961wodz.com/files/2013/04/Pray-For-Boston-Photo-3-630x429.jpg

Officials are currently asking for any videos you may have from the event.

If you are someone who has any information, please contact 1-800-494-TIPS

For more information, please click the link below:

Yahoo! Special Report and New Updates on the Boston Bombings

Mama MissKitty Madness

Ah, MissKitty. I can't tell you how much I respect this little girl. When she first came to my front yard, she was starving to death. You could see all her bones, and she appeared to be frantic to find food and water in the cold, dry environment of the high desert.

I began putting out bowls of dog food and water, which she promptly gobbled up. She was eating so much food, but continuing to starve. So, I bought some cat food and began leaving a little more food in the yard.

I put the food as far away from the house as possible, thinking she was just a neighborhood cat hanging around because I was feeding her. We have a large front yard, so I would put the food and water at the far edge of the yard. When the ants got in it, I took out a plastic liner for plants to act as a mote.

As I look at her curled up next me while I write this, my heart breaks a little to think that I was trying to keep her away. I feel especially bad knowing what I now know. After a few days of feeding what I thought of as "the kitty," I realized that she had be nursing. That same day, I found her nursing those kitties: six of them!

This is the first photo I ever took of
MissKitty. I had just decided to
keep her.

No wonder she had still been starving on the piddly amount of food I left for her! That amount of food was only enough for one cat, not seven! Soon after that, I began leaving out much more food, but decided to bring it to the back yard, where the kittens were staying.

I also spotted her hefting rabbits that were larger than she was over my six-foot fence. All six kittens were perfectly healthy. She completely sacrificed her own well-being for that of her babies. I know that much of that has to do with instinct, but I've heard of cats that do the opposite.

This is right before she got spayed.
She still tried to nurse after being spayed,
so I had to separate them until she healed.
Even after two weeks of healing, she tried to nurse.

Some mama cats kill the weakest kittens, or even half the litter. Some will keep enough food to survive while letting a couple of the kittens starve. Not mama MissKitty. She kept even her smallest kittens as healthy as can be. I can't help but feel tremendous respect for her, instincts or not.

MissKitty reaches for the phone.

MissKitty still loves to hang out with her kittens.
Cheetah is on the left, and Gracie on the right.

Can you believe that sweet little face?

This photo was taken just a couple of days ago.
She still loves to groom all her babies, and play with them.

A little LOLCat I created that pokes fun at my dancing ability

MissKitty loves to stick her tongue out.

This is an early photo of me holding her.

This one pokes fun at my dad's computer literacy. :)

This is when she was recovering from spay surgery.
I bought this super-cushy bed to set on the couch next to me

I just got nominated for a Liebster Award!

Designs by Row has nominated me for a Liebster Award! I did a little research into the award, and it turns out that it is simply a way to showcase talented bloggers who don't have a lot of followers. I'm OK with that!

I'm brand new to this. In fact, I just started my blog the day the A to Z Challenge began. I had tried my hand at it before, but never really got anywhere with it. Over the course of the challenge, however, I've learned how to keep up with the blog, and write something each day. And I'm absolutely loving it!

In order to accept the award, I (and anyone who is nominated and also wishes to participate), must nominate 11 other bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers. I know, it's your basic pyramid scheme, but there's no money involved, and nothing saying you can't nominate someone who was already nominated. That also means you will never run out of bloggers to nominate!

Each blogger who wishes to participate must ask their nominated bloggers 11 questions, then include 11 random facts about themselves, and answer the 11 questions asked of them. Since I am participating, I have done just that, below.

My nominations (in no particular order):

Haley's Comic
Designs by Row
Sonnia J. Kemmer
sidetracked!
Pull Up a Toadstool
One Side Paper
Precious Monsters
The NovaBug-Blog
Fur Will Fly
Father Dragon Writes
Rebeccah Writes

11 Random facts about me:

1. In my family, your middle name is like your first name, and your first name is like your middle name. I have always gone by my middle name, Kristen.
2. I named my first dog Andy.
3. I hate olives and grapefruit.
4. I have just one younger brother, who is seven years younger than me.
5. I have never been married
6. I stopped eating wheat about two months ago.
7. Fish is my favorite protein.
8. I used to live on a farm.
9. I used to be the Chief Information Officer (CIO) of a company, and hated it.
10. I used to love picking up snails and letting them crawl up my arms when I was little.
11. I won an electric guitar autographed by the band Lovehammers for winning a music video contest.


Questions I was asked by Rowena:

1. What is your favourite colour?

Burgundy

2. Which famous person would play you in a film about your life?

That's a tough one. I really have no idea, so I'm just going to choose Milla Jovovich because she's my favorite sci-fi actress, and I love sci-fi. She's way prettier than me, but that's pretty cool too. I'd love to be pretty, and have the ability to kick ass!

3. Which celebrity do you like least, and why?

Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi. I don't think I have to say more than that. Even her name is annoying! She's fake, disgusting, annoying, and stupid.

4. If you were an animal...what would you be?

A dog. I used to pretend to be a dog, and write little plays about dogs to perform when I was little.

5. Are you a cat person or a dog person?

A dog person, although I have only one dog and seven cats.

6. What is your lucky number?

13, because it's my birthday. That means I don't have any unlucky numbers. :)

7. If you were a super hero what powers would you have?

I have a lot of dreams about flying, so I guess the power to fly!

8. Worst present ever received?

Wilted carnations from my boyfriend at the time.

9. What is your favorite board game?

I love backgammon because I used to play it with my grandmother when I was little.

10. What is your favorite smell?

Lavender! We have some outside. I also love the way my dog smells after she's been searching for her ball in the pine trees, so I love pine as well.

11. Can you play a musical instrument?

Sort of. I played the flute for a very short time when I was younger, then moved on to the clarinet. I wasn't very good at that either.


My 11 Questions For My Liebster Nominees:

1. What is your favorite vegetable?
2. Where would you go for a dream vacation?
3. What is your favorite TV genre?
4. Who is your favorite artist, and why?
5. What is your favorite political subject (you don't have to give away your political affiliation)?
6. What types of insect do you like, if any?
7. Have you ever been obsessed with a person, place, thing, or idea (you can share as much as you want here, or just say yes or no)?
8. What is your favorite magazine?
9. What is your least favorite food?
10. What is your least favorite subject to discuss?
11. What qualities do you think are most important in making a person beautiful (you can include inner or outer beauty)?

Lovely Lady Lulu

Lulu and the cats
I've talked a lot about all the cats I've rescued recently, but now it's time to talk about my sweet Lulu. I've always considered myself a dog person, after all. My love for the new rescued cats running all around has not diminished the love for my dog, although she doesn't understand that.

I've been feeling bad for her lately, because she feels so neglected. I have not neglected her, but I do spend far less time cuddling with her than I used to. She's the only one who even gets to be cuddled. She's the only one who gets to lick my face. None of that matters to her though. The fact that the cats have invaded her yard, and get to spend any time at all with me makes her incredibly jealous.

The worst is when I hold one of the cats, even if it's just to put them outside. I try to hold them when she's not looking, but it's almost like she knows what I've been doing. She gets all huffy, and starts pouting. Then I have to take the time to snuggle up to her and win her back. I'm just glad Lulu is not violent toward the cats. She has been going to the beauty parlor since she was 8 weeks old, so she is used to being around cats and other dogs.

The smartest dog I've ever known
Lulu is probably the smartest dog I've ever known. I could see how amazing she was from the time she was very young, and could understand perspective. The most amazing thing is that I never had to train her much. She just knew things. Here are just a few of the amazing, human-like things little Lulu has done:

The ladies at the beauty parlor always give Lulu
what we like to call a "butt bow."

* She never needed to be potty trained. I just showed her how to go out the doggy door one time, and that was it. Granted, we had an older dog for her to emulate, but still. That's pretty impressive!

* She disciplined the other dog for me. The beautiful, wonderful older dog, Emily, had a few bad habits. One of them was to bark at the dog next door. Whenever I would say, "No," Lulu would run outside and grab Emily by the collar, and drag her back inside.

Similarly, when MissKitty is in the house and starts scratching the furniture, Lulu runs up and lets out a little growl, and tries to nose-poke her. It's based on the fact that I said "No" to MissKitty a few times when she scratched, but I never trained Lulu to discipline another animal.

* She's generous. When my older dog was not feeling well, Lulu came up to get her treat, then took it to Emily and dropped it in front of her! Then she came back to get her own. I had never seen a dog do that before!

* When she was stuck in the bedroom one night and couldn't wake anyone, she went to the bathroom in the shower. I never taught her to do this, and I've never had a dog that has done that before. She just seemed to know that is where things get washed away.

* When she was little and couldn't reach the windowsill to see my dad outside, but could hear him walking around, she stepped back and jumped on her hind legs to see him. It was very obvious that she could understand perspective.

I never ask them to, but the ladies
at the beauty parlor love to
decorate Lulu's pretty nails.

* She loves to create her own puzzle games. She loves to catch the ball, but when nobody wants to play, she will create her own game. She loves to push the ball into a difficult-to-reach place, then try to figure out how to get it back.

* She has human-like mannerisms. I usually call her front paws "hands," because she uses them almost like hands. Sometimes she'll wipe her chin in a way that makes me feel like I'm sitting next to a person. Sometimes she'll use her hands to squeak a toy. Other times, she'll reach into a container in which she dropped a toy, just so she could figure out how to pull it out.

* She loves to eat off a utensil. Sometimes I think she's trying to be human. She was always more likely to imitate me rather than the other dog. And so, she prefers eating high quality organic food off a fork rather than out of her bowl. And if I try to feed her regular dog food rather than organic Castor and Pollix? She turns up her nose at it and walks away. I mean that. She literally turns up her nose at food she doesn't like, and lets out a little huff as she turns away.

* She tries to speak. When she really wants to play, she'll start moving her mouth in a weird way and begin "talking." Then, she'll drop the ball in front of you and poke you with her nose. If you're busy or don't pay attention, she'll look you in the eye, then dramatically look down at her ball.  She'll keep talking the whole time.

* She loves to take care of me when I'm sick. If I don't feel well, she'll snuggle up next to me, and just stare into my eyes. Then she'll lick my cheek until one of two things happens: I stop her, or have a miraculous recovery.

* She loves to be held like a baby. I know when she wants me to hold her this way when she sits with her back to me on the couch, then pushes herself back until she's almost falling over on me. When she makes this motion, I reach over and pull her into my arms, so she's lying on her back on my lap, just like a baby. She's very large, mind you: 65 pounds! She'll then go completely limp, and toss her head all the way back so I can give her "baby kisses" (a really fast series of tiny kisses) all over her neck.

Fx5: Singing About a Website for Camping with Dogs and Cats

I've joined the Follow Friday Four Fill-In Fun Blog Hop. I found it on Sidetracked! while blog hopping for the A to Z Challenge. You can find out more and join here.

This week's statements:
1. I don’t like to ____
2. I love to ___ in the morning
3. If I could change one thing in my life it would be _______
4. If I was better at _____, I would _____

My answers:
1. I don't like to go camping.
2. I love to throw the ball for the dog while petting the kitties in the morning.
3. If I could change one thing in my life it would be finishing that darned website already, so it wouldn't be hanging over my head while I try to enjoy writing.
4. If I was better at singing, I would sing in public.