Saturday, June 24, 2006

Vacation in Athens is calling me

Day two in Athens should see us hitting the "sights" on the musical history walking tour.
The LMGC wanted to hit the Lona show at the Caledonia Lounge last night, so Steve and I went along for the late-night walk (around 1:30 for those of you keeping up). The first and third songs we heard were good. Second song was too much emo wailing and woe-is-me. And no discernible tune. We walked out when they started up with "Owner of a Lonely Heart." Not because of the song so much as because of the unbearable heat in the joint. In the middle of the dark Georgia night after an evening thunderstorm cooled things off and with ceiling fans spinning, the Caledonia was like a sauna. I can't imagine what it will feel like around 5 this afternoon. Oy vey.
While cooling off in the outdoors section of the Caledonia, the LMGC said "There's Mike Mills..." just as I turned to the right. And as those words sank in, Mills walked right past us and into the Caledonia. We were restrained and only peeked in the doorway to verify it was, indeed, MEM.
A walking lap around several blocks of downtown after closing time let us see some of the late night goings-on of Athens. We ended up at the back door of the Caledonia, and Mills was still inside. A call to the DivaGeek regarding Mills went unanswered, and we headed for home.
Also yesterday - lunch at the Mellow Mushroom, downtown shopping, presents, and supper with the Murmurs crowd at EastWest Bistro. I recommend the sweet potato chips with bleu cheese dressing!

Friday, June 23, 2006

Working for a living

Take Your Pet to Work Day sounds like a great idea. However, my office is not big enough to hold the fab four plus the new kitty and me. Maybe instead of casual Friday, I can have "pet Friday" and take turns.

Thursday, June 22, 2006

End of an era?

News of the closing of the Ramshead Rathskeller (aka "The Rat") in Chapel Hill hits me hard. It was the first place I ever ate out in Chapel Hill, during CTOPS (freshman orientation) way back in '89. I had lasagna that night, the first of many to come, along with their specialty drink, the "Tar Heel." I remember it being a light blue frozen concoction that tasted like coconut. Being 17, I had the non-alcoholic version and I bought my glass etched with the restaurant logo. It sits in a place of reverence on a bookcase in my parents' house to this day.
I've enjoyed many meals at The Rat in the seventeen (OMG) years since. It was a treat to introduce the LMGC to the wonders of The Rat's lasagna. A bowl of cheese soup with a stray noodle, it's often been called. Their house dressing and garlic bread are pretty high on my list as well.
We're keeping fingers and paws crossed that The Rat will reopen soon. Chapel Hill has lost too many of its landmarks already, and I hate for this special restaurant to be added to that list.
Pictures from March 2006 - exterior door and the "jungle room"

Monday, June 19, 2006

Road signs

Have you seen these billboards? Orange-red background with white font.
  • Clowns hate tangelos.
  • I'm a hot toe picker.
  • I pooted
We saw them on I-77 in Ohio and Virginia and I-40 in NC. We'll be on the lookout for more on the way to Athens. Word has it they're phrases from Cartoon Network shows.

Take a picture here, take a souvenir


Cuyahoga is the best souvenir from my trip to Ohio for the wedding of the LMGC's nephew.
She was in the parking lot of our hotel and meowed continuously all weekend. It woke me up Sunday morning and I found her hiding under a car. After a few minutes of coaxing, she came out enough for me to snatch her up. I brought her inside and gave her milk mixed with water which she enjoyed immensely.
When I told the LMGC about my plan to cat-nap her to NC, he said "You have pet issues." I fired back with "You have CD issues." We can not argue with the truth.
After a long howwwwwl of protest upon entering the car, Cuya settled down long enough for me to get a carrier and some necessities from the nearest Wal-Mart. She and the LGMC bonded while I shopped.
She is a great traveler and was very quiet on the 12 hour trip home. She's confined to the LMGC's bathroom right now, while we teach her litterbox etiquette.
I noticed she wasn't chewing her dry cat food, and wondered if she even could. The LMGC pried her mouth open (along with the comment "I feel like my daddy" - who was a dentist) and we found out she only has four teeth! The LGMC asked her "Are you sure you're not from West Virginia?"

Sunday, June 11, 2006

In which I bring down the wrath of the Lord

Because I mowed the grass on Sunday. All you non-Bible belt residents, pull up a chair.
We are talking about keeping the Sabbath holy. And boy, did I blow that one out of the water today. It will be talked about for some time by the bluehairs down the road. How Pearl's granddaughter CUT THE GRASS ON A SUNDAY. It is a BIG DEAL around here to not do physical labor on a Sunday. Many times over the years have I joined in the tsk-ing of someone pushing a mower on a Sunday morn instead of going to church. Now I'm one of them!
And y'all...my daddy helped me! He's hell-bound too! I will have company!
I told my mother in advance, and told her if anyone asked, to say that I'm a heathen and she can't do anything with me. She laughed.
To wit...here's what the weather's like tonight.

See that purple down around the state line? That's all because of me.

Tuesday, June 06, 2006

Political prisoner

In the tradition of Gandhi, Guantanamo Bay detainees, and other protestors over the years, Angus went into a hunger strike over the weekend. He was with the grandparents while I was out of town for one night. He is a low maintenance dog and fairly obedient, but I guess he missed me just a bit. He refused to eat. Drank a little water, but didn't touch a bite of food.
Having raised a stubborn child, my parents did not give in to the emotional blackmail. They didn't even offer him a dog biscuit to tempt him to eat. No doggie MRE was cracked open either. These people are hard core.
Angus was very excited to see me when I returned Sunday. I brought him home, put the same food in the same bowl down for him, and within ten minutes, he was crunching away. He thinks he made his point.